Peter Sharp

Professor Peter Sharp is an Emeritus Professor in the School of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Sydney. He holds a PhD in Genetics and possesses over 40 years of experience in plant breeding. Sharp previously served as Director of the Plant Breeding Institute and as Research Capability Coordinator for Plant Genetic Technologies in the Sydney Institute of Agriculture. In these roles, he developed genetic diversity in wheat through wide crossing and mutagenesis, providing materials for screening disease resistance and grain quality traits. His contributions support research areas such as cereal rust diseases conducted at the Plant Breeding Institute, which was established in 1973 to advance crop breeding.

Sharp's research specializations and academic interests center on plant genetics and breeding, particularly in wheat. Key areas include mesophyll conductance, dormancy, mutation detection via TILLING methods, introgression from alien species like Secale strictum subsp. anatolicum, lutein esterification, flour mixing protein interactions, triacylglycerol accumulation through genetic engineering, and genes for glume color. Notable publications are 'Genetic control of mesophyll conductance in common wheat' (New Phytologist, 2016), 'A Modified TILLING Method for Wheat Breeding' (Plant Genome, 2009), 'Dormancy in white-grained wheat: Progress towards identification of genes and molecular markers' (Plant Molecular Biology, 2002), 'Secale strictum subsp. anatolicum derivatives: production and characterization' (Genome, 2020), 'A Synergistic Genetic Engineering Strategy Induced Triacylglycerol Accumulation in Leaves' (Frontiers in Plant Science, 2020), 'Protein interactions during flour mixing using wheat flour with altered starch' (Journal of Cereal Science, 2017), 'Genome-wide SNP discovery and population structure analysis in bread wheat' (BMC Genomics, 2016), and 'Identification of a recessive gene RgM4G52 conferring red glume color in bread wheat' (Frontiers in Plant Science, 2024). He has authored 127 publications, garnering over 6,560 citations. In 2019, Sharp was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science while at the University of Sydney.

Professional Email: peter.sharp@sydney.edu.au