A North Carolina State University doctoral researcher is advancing genome editing techniques aimed at improving hybrid crop breeding systems and supporting future seed development efforts.
Caitlin Kestell, a Ph.D. student in NC State’s Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, is conducting research focused on biotechnology applications for hybrid seed production, including the development of male sterility systems for crop breeding programs.
Kestell, who grew up in northern Wisconsin, became interested in agricultural biotechnology while studying at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She later joined NC State’s Genetics & Genomics Scholars program, which provides incoming doctoral students with interdisciplinary training in genetics research and professional development.
The program included laboratory rotations across multiple research areas, leading Kestell to join the laboratory of professor Ralph Dewey in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
Her research centers on hybrid breeding, a process in which two elite parental lines are crossed to produce offspring with improved performance characteristics, including increased yields and stronger disease resistance. The resulting performance advantage, known as hybrid vigor, is widely used in commercial crop breeding.
Kestell’s work focuses on developing universal male sterility systems that can be applied across multiple hybrid crops. Male sterility prevents self-pollination and encourages cross-pollination, an important step in producing hybrid seed.
The research combines genome editing tools, including CRISPR and meganucleases, to edit mitochondrial genomes associated with male sterility traits. The approach is intended to improve hybrid seed production systems in crops where current breeding methods remain limited.
In addition to hybrid breeding research, Kestell has worked on genome editing projects involving seedless fruit development, including tomatoes and Sugar Baby watermelon.
Her research has received support through scholarship awards from the N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative, including funding from the Norma L. Trolinder N.C. PSI Graduate Student Endowment and the David M. Peele PSI Graduate Student Support Fund.
Outside the laboratory, Kestell participates in science outreach and agricultural education programs. Since 2022, she has worked with the N.C. Youth Institute, a program that brings together high school students to develop research projects addressing global hunger and agricultural production challenges.
The program is hosted through NC State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative, NC 4-H and the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences. Student projects have explored topics including irrigation technologies and alternative food production systems.
Following completion of her doctoral program, Kestell plans to continue working in genome editing and crop improvement research focused on agricultural production and seed development.
Source: North Carolina State University, "Breeding Possibilities for Better Crops"