Surinder Chopra

Professor of Maize Genetics

Surinder Chopra

Research Summary

Regulation of flavonoid biosynthesis during plant development and plant-pathogen interaction. Epigenetic regulation and allele specific patterns.

Huck Affiliations

Links

Most Recent Publications

Plant defense against insect herbivory: Flavonoid-mediated growth inhibition of Helicoverpa zea

Debamalya Chatterjee, Charles Colvin, Tyler Lesko, Michelle Peiffer, Gary W. Felton, Surinder Chopra, 2025, Plant Stress

Maize unstable factor for orange1 encodes a nuclear protein that affects redox accumulation during kernel development

D Chatterjee, Z Zhang, P Lin, P Wang, G Sidhu, Neela H. Yennawar, J Hsieh, P Chen, R Song, B Meyers, Surinder Chopra, 2024, Plant Cell

The effects of a high-flavonoid corn cultivar on the gastrointestinal tract microbiota in chickens undergoing necrotic enteritis

Vinicius Buiatte, Monika Proszkowiec-Weglarz, Katarzyna Miska, Dorian Dominguez, Mahmoud Mahmoud, Tyler Lesko, Bryan P. Panek, Surinder Chopra, Mark Jenkins, Alberto Gino Lorenzoni Calvo, 2024, PLoS One

Maize near-isogenic lines with enhanced flavonoids alleviated dextran sodium sulfate-induced murine colitis via modulation of the gut microbiota

B Wu, A Cox, H Chang, M Kennett, Cristina Rosa, Surinder Chopra, S Li, L Reddivari, 2023, Food and Function on p. 9606-9616

Sorghum and maize flavonoids are detrimental to growth and survival of fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda

Debamalya Chatterjee, Tyler Lesko, Michelle Peiffer, Dinakaran Elango, Julien Beuzelin, Gary W. Felton, Surinder Chopra, 2023, Journal of Pest Science on p. 1551-1567

Association genetics of early season cold and late season frost tolerance in Sorghum bicolor

Dinakaran Elango, Xiaoyu Wang, Rohil Sahai Bhatnagar, Qixian Tan, Iffa Gaffoor, Zhenbin Hu, Weiya Xue, Gregory W. Roth, Geoffrey P. Morris, Lavanya Reddivari, Surinder Chopra, 2022, Crop Science on p. 1844-1865

Inclusion of high-flavonoid corn in the diet of broiler chickens as a potential approach for the control of necrotic enteritis

Vinicius Buiatte, Dorian Dominguez, Tyler Lesko, Mark Jenkins, Surinder Chopra, Alberto Gino Lorenzoni, 2022, Poultry Science

Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides: Friend or Foe for Human and Plant Health?

Dinakaran Elango, Karthika Rajendran, Liza Van der Laan, Sheelamary Sebastiar, Joscif Raigne, Naveen A. Thaiparambil, Noureddine El Haddad, Bharath Raja, Wanyan Wang, Antonella Ferela, Kevin O. Chiteri, Mahendar Thudi, Rajeev K. Varshney, Surinder Chopra, Arti Singh, Asheesh K. Singh, 2022, Frontiers in Plant Science

Techniques and tools of modern plant breeding

Dinakaran Elango, Germán Sandoya, Surinder Chopra, 2021, on p. 17-26

Plant biotechnology: Experience and future prospects: Second edition

Agnès Ricroch, Surinder Chopra, Marcel Kuntz, 2021,

Most-Cited Papers

Elective cancer surgery in COVID-19-free surgical pathways during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: An international, multicenter, comparative cohort study

James C. Glasbey, Dmitri Nepogodiev, Joana F.F. Simoes, Omar Omar, Elizabeth Li, Mary L. Venn, Mohammad K.Abou Chaar, Vita Capizzi, Daoud Chaudhry, Anant Desai, Jonathan G. Edwards, Jonathan P. Evans, Marco Fiore, Jose Flavio Videria, Samuel J. Ford, Ian Ganly, Ewen A. Griffiths, Rohan R. Gujjuri, Angelos G. Kolias, Haytham M.A. Kaafarani, Ana Minaya-Bravo, Siobhan C. McKay, Helen M. Mohan, Keith J. Roberts, Carlos San Miguel-Méndez, Peter Pockney, Richard Shaw, Neil J. Smart, Grant D. Stewart, Sudha Sundar, Raghavan Vidya, Aneel A. Bhangu, C. Allemand, L. Boccalatte, M. Figari, M. Lamm, J. Larrañaga, C. Marchitelli, F. Noll, D. Odetto, M. Perrotta, J. Saadi, L. Zamora, C. Alurralde, E. L. Caram, D. Eskinazi, J. P. Mendoza, M. Usandivaras, R. Badra, A. Esteban, 2021, Journal of Clinical Oncology on p. 66-78

Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides: Friend or Foe for Human and Plant Health?

Dinakaran Elango, Karthika Rajendran, Liza Van der Laan, Sheelamary Sebastiar, Joscif Raigne, Naveen A. Thaiparambil, Noureddine El Haddad, Bharath Raja, Wanyan Wang, Antonella Ferela, Kevin O. Chiteri, Mahendar Thudi, Rajeev K. Varshney, Surinder Chopra, Arti Singh, Asheesh K. Singh, 2022, Frontiers in Plant Science

A sorghum MYB transcription factor induces 3-deoxyanthocyanidins and enhances resistance against leaf blights in maize

Farag Ibraheem, Iffa Gaffoor, Qixian Tan, Chi Ren Shyu, Surinder Chopra, 2015, Molecules on p. 2388-2404

Sorghum 3-Deoxyanthocyanidin Flavonoids Confer Resistance against Corn Leaf Aphid

Rupesh R. Kariyat, Iffa Gaffoor, Sampurna Sattar, Cullen W. Dixon, Nadia Frock, Juliet Moen, Consuelo M. De Moraes, Mark C. Mescher, Gary A. Thompson, Surinder Chopra, 2019, Journal of Chemical Ecology on p. 502-514

Sorghum and maize flavonoids are detrimental to growth and survival of fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda

Debamalya Chatterjee, Tyler Lesko, Michelle Peiffer, Dinakaran Elango, Julien Beuzelin, Gary W. Felton, Surinder Chopra, 2023, Journal of Pest Science on p. 1551-1567

Sorghum root flavonoid chemistry, cultivar, and frost stress effects on rhizosphere bacteria and fungi

Mara Cloutier, Debamalya Chatterjee, Dinakaran Elango, Jin Cui, Maryann Victoria Bruns, Surinder Chopra, 2021, Phytobiomes Journal on p. 39-50

Genotypic and pathogenic diversity of Colletotrichum sublineola isolates from sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and Johnsongrass (S. halepense) in the southeastern United States

K. V. Xavier, E. S.G. Mizubuti, M. V. Queiroz, S. Chopra, L. Vaillancourt, 2018, Plant Disease on p. 2341-2351

The dominant and poorly penetrant phenotypes of maize Unstable factor for orange1 are caused by DNA methylation changes at a linked transposon

Kameron Wittmeyer, Jin Cui, Debamalya Chatterjee, Tzuu Fen Lee, Qixian Tan, Weiya Xue, Yinping Jiao, Po Hao Wang, Iffa Gaffoor, Doreen Ware, Blake C. Meyers, Surinder Chopraa, 2018, Plant Cell on p. 3006-3023

Intestinal mucosal barrier function restoration in mice by maize diet containing enriched flavan-4-ols

Binning Wu, Rohil Bhatnagar, Vijaya V.indukuri, Shara Chopra, Kylie March, Nina Cordero, Surinder Chopra, Lavanya Reddivari, 2020, Nutrients

Genome wide association mapping of epi-cuticular wax genes in Sorghum bicolor

Dinakaran Elango, Weiya Xue, Surinder Chopra, 2020, Physiology and Molecular Biology of Plants on p. 1727-1737

News Articles Featuring Surinder Chopra

Mar 02, 2025

Select corn lines contain compounds that sicken, kill major crop pest

A team of researchers at Penn State conducted a study that demonstrated that genetic lines of corn have inherent compounds that serve as insecticides, protecting them from the larvae that feed on them.

Full Article

Feb 19, 2025

Select corn lines contain compounds that sicken, kill major crop pest

The compounds, called flavonoids, have an insecticidal effect on corn earworm larvae.

Full Article

Aug 23, 2022

Flavonoids from sorghum plants kill fall armyworm pest on corn; may protect crop

Flavonoids produced by sorghum leaves have shown promising results in combating fall armyworm larvae. When sprayed on the leaves of corn, sorghum flavonoids stunt the growth of fall armyworm and often kill the pest, Penn State researchers report in a new study.

Full Article

May 03, 2021

Mutant corn gene boosts sugar in seeds, leaves, may lead to breeding better crop

An abnormal build up of carbohydrates — sugars and starches — in the kernels and leaves of a mutant line of corn can be traced to one misregulated gene, and that discovery offers clues about how the plant deals with stress.

Full Article

Aug 10, 2020

Flavonoids' presence in sorghum roots may lead to frost-resistant crop

​Flavonoid compounds — produced by the roots of some sorghum plants — positively affect soil microorganisms, according to Penn State researchers, who suggest the discovery is an early step in developing a frost-resistant line of the valuable crop for North American farmers.​

Full Article

Apr 03, 2019

Insect-deterring sorghum compounds may be eco-friendly pesticide

Compounds produced by sorghum plants to defend against insect feeding could be isolated, synthesized and used as a targeted, nontoxic insect deterrent, according to researchers who studied plant-insect interactions that included field, greenhouse and laboratory components.

Full Article