About the Project
HelEx looks for the molecular and genetic strategies that would let sunflower cultivation adapt to climate change while improving its environmental footprint. The project accelerates the breeding of varieties able to withstand extreme drought and heat without giving up production quality or the biodiversity services the crop supports.
It combines expertise in plant genetics, biotechnology, pollinator ecology and socioeconomic assessment, and goes beyond existing knowledge by developing innovative phenotyping methods based on AI, producing multi-omics networks, and identifying new haplotypes from wild Helianthus species.
