Damian Ravetta

Dr. Damian Ravetta


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

25Years (2002-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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10 November 2025 in Grasses
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
DRDamian Ravetta
Damian Ravetta
Alejandra VilelaAlejandra Vilela
Alejandra Vilela
LDLee DeHaan
Lee DeHaan
LGLuciana Gonzalez González-Paleo
Luciana Gonzalez González-Paleo
Thinopyrum intermedium (c.n. intermediate wheatgrass), marketed under the trade name Kernza, is a promising species for perennial grain production based on seed size, ease of threshing, resistance to shattering, and grain quality. Although numerous generations of breeding for seed yield have been completed, the impact of selection on non-target traits is unknown. Here, we evaluated structural and functional changes brought about by selection for seed yield over a sequence of nine selection cycles (C0 to C9). In two experiments under semi-controlled environmental conditions, we compared gas exchange (A, E, gs, and A/Ci curves), leaf and root morphology, and the structure of seedlings from 10 generations. We found that the selection for yield throughout cycles indirectly changed the leaf structure (leaf size, leaf thickness, and leaf anatomy) and physiology (carbon acquisition and transpiration per unit area), with later cycles showing larger leaves with higher rates of CO2 assimilation and transpiration. Changes in root structure followed similar trends: selection resulted in longer, more branched, and finer roots. These changes in non-target traits are linked to resource-use strategies and to ecosystem services provided by Kernza. Understanding how the domestication of perennial grains impacts non-target traits will aid in the design of integrated breeding programs for Kernza and other perennial grain crops.

31 May 2002 in Industrial Crops and Products
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
DRDamian Ravetta
Damian Ravetta
AVAlejandra Vilela
Alejandra Vilela
DWDiego Wassner
Diego Wassner
NCNicolás Ciano
Nicolás Ciano