Sacande, Moctar
Job TitleInternational Programme Co-ordinator for Africa
DepartmentSeed Conservation
SectionCollecting
Science Teams:
Joined Kew: 2003
Foreign Language(s): French, several West African languages.
Qualifications & Appointments
Baccalaureate (Hons), Mathematics and Natural Sciences Univ. Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 1983
IDR Eng (Hons), Rural Development (Tropical Forestry), Ouagadougou Univ., Burkina Faso, 1986
MSc, Tropical Forestry (Sylviculture and Ecology), Wageningen Univ., 1995
PhD, Wageningen Univ., 2000.
Associate editor, Seed Science and Technology
Seed Storage and Forest Tree & Shrub Seeds technical committees, International Seed Testing Association (ISTA).
Role
Tropical tree seed physiology, seed storage longevity, desiccation tolerance and seed conservation; research and training management.
Research interests in tropical forest management (sylviculture) with a focus on seed ex situ conservation. Determining and improving the storage behaviour of tropical tree seeds, using neem as a model species. Understanding factors involved in seed deterioration during handling and storage, i.e. desiccation tolerance, imbibitional damage and storage longevity at sub-zero temperatures; the role of antioxidants; membrane phase behaviour; biological glasses and water properties in seed storage stability. Research training activities and supervision, and dissemination of information, as a part of the MSBP's collaborative international programmes.
Projects
- Cryo-conservation Centres of Excellence
- Improving the Identification, Handling and Storage of ‘Difficult’ Seeds
- Darwin Initiative Research Exercise on Community Tree Seeds (DIRECTS) in Africa
(project completed 2006) - Field Guides: published and planned
- Guinea (Conakry): Developing botanical capacity, a National Herbarium and Red Data book
- Identifying New Oilseed Crops
- Sustained Plant Conservation in the Insular Caribbean
- MSB partnership in Southern Africa (Botswana, Madagascar, Malawi)
- MSB partnership in West Africa (Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali)
- MSBP Madagascar
- Seed Thermal Fingerprint and Oilseed Storage Risk
- Project MGU - the Useful Plants Project
Selected Recent Publications
- Sacandé, M. & Hoekstra, F.A. (2003). Optimising conditions for neem (Azadirachta indica) seed longevity. In Smith, R.D., Dickie, J.B., Linington, S.H., Pritchard, H.W. & Probert, R.J. (eds) Seed Conservation: Turning Science into Practice. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 761-773.
Pritchard, H.W., Sacandé, M. & Berjak, P. (2004). Biological aspects of tropical tree seed desiccation and storage responses. In Sacandé, M., Joeker, D., Dulloo, M.E. & Tompsen, K. (eds) Comparative storage biology of tropical tree seeds. Rome: IPGRI. 319-341.
- Sacandé, M., Pritchard, H.W. & Dudley, A. (2004). Germination characteristics of Prunus africana seeds. New Forest 27: 239-250.
- Sacandé, M., Pritchard, H.W. & Dulloo, M.E. (2004). Seed science and technology needs of SAFORGEN trees for conservation and sustainable use. Plant Genetic Resources Newsletter 139: 53-58.
- Sacandé, M., Joeker, D., Dulloo, M.E. & Tompsen, K. (eds) (2004). Comparative storage biology of tropical tree seeds. Rome: IPGRI. 363 pp.
Selected Earlier Publications
- Sacandé, M., Groot, S.P.C., Hoekstra, F.A., De Castro, R. & Bino, R.J. (1997). Cell cycle events in developing Neem (Azadirachta indica) seeds: are they related to intermediate storage behaviour? Seed Science Research 7: 161-168.
- Sacandé, M., Hoekstra, F.A., van Pijlen, J.G. & Groot, S.P.C. (1998). A multifactorial study of conditions influencing longevity of neem (Azadirachta indica) seeds. Seed Science Research 8: 473-482.
- Sacandé, M., Buitink, J. & Hoekstra, F.A. (2000). A study of water relations in neem (Azadirachta indica) seed that is characterized by complex storage behaviour. Journal of Experimental Botany 51: 635-643.
- Sacandé, M., Hoekstra FA, Van Aelst AC & De Vos CHR. (2000). Is oxidative stress involved in the loss of neem (Azadirachta indica) seed viability? Seed Science Research 10: 381-392.
- Sacandé, M., Golovina, E.A., Van Aelst, A.C. & Hoekstra, F.A. (2001). Viability loss of neem (Azadirachta indica) seeds associated with membrane phase behaviour. Journal of Experimental Botany 52: 919-931.
