Sarkal Jyakhwa
Sarkal Jyakhwa is a junior research fellow in the Soil Ecology Workgroup at the University of Tartu, Estonia. He comes from Nepal. He holds a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the Himalayan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (HICAST), Kathmandu, Nepal. In 2022, he graduated with a prestigious Erasmus Mundus master’s degree in plant breeding (emPLANT) from the Institute Polytechnique Unilasalle, France, and the University of Helsinki, Finland.
The aims of his project are (i) to identify how AM fungal diversity changes due to crop rotation and fertilization (ii) to test if indigenous and introduced AM fungi differentially modify the host’s root system architecture; and (iii) to monitor temporal changes in the abundance, diversity, and community composition of AM fungi under different agricultural practices in Estonia. His research methodology will include field collecting soil samples, subsequent DNA-based analysis of AM fungal diversity to characterize the AM fungal communities, X-ray CT scans, and other root analysis approaches.
Supervisors: Prof. Maarja Opik, Prof. Ivika Ostonen (UTARTU)