dr. DW (Desalegn) Etalo

Desalegn is a multifaceted life scientist with a keen interest in systems biology, eager to understand how living systems operate and interact with each other, a stepping-stone to unraveling the processes behind the co-evolution of organisms. With this understanding, he strives to develop biodiversity-centered resilient agricultural or ecological intervention strategies to counter the current decline in agroecosystems. In the past decade, he has broadened his knowledge and expertise by working from gene to organism on plant stress physiology, plant-microbe (pathogenic and beneficial) interactions, parasitic plant-host interactions, and microbial ecology. He considers chemicals a lingua franca in multipartite interactions, and as such, they are the basis of his studies. Currently, he is leading the Translational Phytopathology team and guides three Ph.D. and three MSc students.