News

The new field of phytonanotechnology, which involves the use of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) to enhance/alter plant systems, promises to have an immense impact on critical global problems related to climate change and the scale of food production.

Similar to how chameleons can change colors to blend into their surroundings, cyanobacteria can tune their coloring to better absorb light in different environments.

Plant gene regulation dictates how plants grow under differing environmental conditions, and researchers from the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory are looking at how different genes control light-dependent processes in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Mauricio Tejera-Nieves is a postdoctoral researcher in the Walker lab and the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center. "Above all, I think the most valuable resource is its people, in my experience everyone is so knowledgeable and willing to collaborate."

The newest state budget includes more than $300 million in funding for Michigan State University, with more than $50 million supporting MSU agriculture improvements.

In June 2022, plant cell wall researchers from around the world were able to meet in person for the first time in three years at the 9th International Cell Wall Research Conference in East Lansing, Michigan.

Now with Ph.D. in hand, former MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory graduate student Yang-Tsung Lin is ready to continue his studies in algae as a postdoctoral researcher in Professor Sabeeha Merchant’s lab at UC Berkeley, beginning in July 2022.

Friday, June 3, 2022, the City Limits Bowling Center saw the RETURN of Gutter Ball 26! After a two-year hiatus, over 60 bowlers fought tooth and nail for the chance to win the prestigious title of “Gutter Ball 26 Champion.”

Jianping Hu, professor at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL) and the Department of Plant Biology, received a $900,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study the motility of cellular energy organelles, peroxisomes and mitochondria in particular, along the cytoskeleton in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Research Assistant Professor Sarathi Weraduwage from the Sharkey lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory has accepted a new position as a tenure-track assistant professor at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Quebec.

Gregg Howe, an MSU College of Natural Science researcher internationally known for his work on plant resilience and how plants respond to insect attacks, will be heading to the University of Tsukuba in Japan as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar for the 2022-2023 academic year. Howe and his collaborators will apply cutting-edge genetic technologies to the development of crop plants that will contribute to sustainable agriculture and food security.

As our planet’s climate continues to be unpredictable, understanding how plants respond to adverse environmental conditions becomes essential. Improving crop productivity will be vital to feed the nine billion people estimated to be alive in 2050.

The MSU Office of Postdoctoral Affairs and the Office of the Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation annually award the Postdoctoral Excellence in Research Award to two exceptional postdoctoral researchers for their contributions to MSU and the greater research community.

Beronda Montgomery received the Adolph E. Gude Jr. Award, which honors the Gude Family, who made possible establishment of the Gude Plant Science Center. Berkley Walker received the Robert Rabson Award, which recognizes postdoctoral scholars and faculty-level early career scientists who have made excellent contributions in the area of bioenergy research.

Member of the Benning lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL) Drew Mitchell is a recipient of the 2022 Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics (MMG) Dietrich C. Bauer Scholarship Fund award.

Grad student Philip Engelgau and postdoc Peipei Wang have been awarded the 2022 Anton Lang Memorial Award at a ceremony which took place on Monday, April 25, 2022. This year’s lecture was given by Professor Emeritus Govindjee from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Spartan research in the lab of Cheryl Kerfeld could lead to efficient, low-cost chemical reactions for valuable products with help from teensy compartments made by bacteria.

IMPACTS - Integrated training Model in Plant And Compu-Tational Sciences – is a program funded by the National Science Foundation designed to train doctoral students in advanced computational/data science approaches that can be applied to the field of plant biology. The program provides mentorship and funding to the students selected.

The annual forum provides students with an opportunity to showcase their scholarship and creative activity. Held each spring, the University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) brings together an intellectual community of highly motivated students to share their work with faculty, staff, peers and external audiences and receive constructive feedback from judges.

María Santos Merino, postdoctoral researcher from the Ducat lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL), is the first to be awarded the Clarence Suelter Endowed Postdoctoral Fellowship Award from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB).

Spartans in the Kramer lab discover how a plant biochemical could lead to novel approaches for growing crops that are more resilient to fluctuating temperatures.

Encouraging kids  to be future scientists is an outreach effort Heather Roney takes seriously. As an early-career scientist, she has looked for opportunities for outreach and ways to widely communicate the research within her field.

Spartan researchers reveal processes that keep a plant’s energy balance in check during changing conditions, which could lead to more efficient crops.

Integrating single particle cryo-electron microscopy (EM) and molecular dynamics (MD) has made a paradigm shift to the field of structural biology in order to determine both structure and function of biomolecules.

A new study from the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL) brings fresh insight on the source/sink balance of cyanobacteria and paves the way for further advancements in photosynthetic microbes for potential applications.

University Distinguished Professor Thomas D. Sharkey was named a Pioneer Member of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB), a recognition given to leaders in the society, especially those who have been involved in training graduate students, postdocs and visiting professors.

Michigan State University’s Beronda Montgomery is the recipient of a 2022 American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) Fellow Award.

As the planet experiences the effects of climate change, questions arise about the future of our planet and daily life in general. Many of the major challenges related to a changing climate and their impact on society have Michigan State University Spartans working on solutions.

Researchers from the Benning lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory have been looking into the signals for activating different states of the cell cycle in microalga, which has potential applications for future biofuel production and cancer research.

Christoph Benning, director of the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL), was elected a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). He is among 83 academic inventors to be elected to the group in 2022.

Sean Weise, research assistant professor in the Sharkey lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL), is moving to the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology to build and teach a new undergraduate class.

Whole-molecule carbon isotope ratios (13C/12C) enable assessments of plant carbon uptake yet conceal information about carbon allocation.

It’s estimated that by 2050, the global population could reach 9 billion. With limited natural resources, feeding, clothing and providing materials to support that many people will be challenging. In Federica Brandizzi’s lab at Michigan State University, she and her colleagues are finding ways to make plants part of the solution.

James Santiago, postdoc in the Sharkey lab at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory (PRL) has accepted a new position as a R&D plant physiologist at Soli Organic, a culinary herb company based in Harrisonburg, Virginia.