Research Interests of the Crop Physiology group & the Bienert lab

FOOD-SECURITY

Nutrient efficiency - Water efficiency - Stress tolerance

• Exploration of metalloid- and water-efficiency mechanisms in crops and their underlying genes
• Unravelling dynamic root plasticity mechanisms allowing to cope with climatic-caused water & nutrient stress periods

METHOD DEVELOPMENT - smart phenotyping - precision farming

Smart phenotyping - Precision farming

• Development of B deficiency markers
• Development of growth set-ups suitable to phenotype root growth and development under nutrient limiting conditions

FOOD-SAFETY

Healthy food

• Generation of nutrient-specific but toxic mineral impermeable plant uptake proteins
• Development of healthy crops with reduced toxic metal(loid) levels in edible plant parts

MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES

Cellular metabolism - Tissue functions

• Unravelling of the molecular role of B in root hair, floral and vascular development
• Elucidation of a potential role of B in methylation reactions in plants (and other organisms)