The 100 Dates! research group at NYU Abu Dhabi has signed an agreement with the University of Baghdad that will advance collaboration between the two universities on an initiative to sequence the genome of hundreds of date palm varieties.

The goal of the project is to learn more about the origins and traits of the date palm and different date palm varieties through genomic analysis.

The date palm is extremely important culturally across the Middle East region. Through collaboration, the two universities hope to produce research that will lead to improved cultivation practices.

The University of Baghdad will contribute samples to NYUAD from its repository of over 200 date palm varieties. Its collection is one of the most diverse and informative biological archives on date palms anywhere in the world.

The 100 Dates! research initiative is led by NYU New York Dean of Science Professor Michael Purugganan.