Plant photoreceptors; detecting & reacting to light - Eirini Kaiserli

Plants are ideal to study how environmental stimuli shape morphology and growth. Light is essential for energy production but is also an informational signal that controls two of the most dramatic developmental decisions during the life cycle of a plant: to grow or to flower? This talk will introduce you to the fascinating world of plant photoreceptors and why plants are so exceptional at sensing and adapting to changing light regimes. Key protein players acting at the crossroads of light and temperature signalling pathways will guide you to the brain of the plant cell, the nucleus, where all the action happens. The talk will provide examples of how we employ genetics, physiology, molecular and cell biology to understand how plants respond and adapt to the environment. Applying this research will help to minimise crop loss and enhance food production in response to climate change. 00:00 Introduction 03:06 Light regulates development 04:48 Light percerption in plants 06:05 Plant photoreceptors 07:02 Plant responses to climate change 09:11 Career pathway and research focuses 12:56 Working out how proteins and light interact 23:04 Conclusion Speaker profile: Eirini is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Glasgow. Eirini’s interest in plant biology stems from her undergraduate studies at the University of Glasgow. One of the defining points in her academic path was the award of a Sainsbury Undergraduate Studentship that gave her the opportunity to work at one of the leading plant photobiology labs at Stanford University. This research experience inspired her to pursue a PhD on “UV-B perception” at Glasgow followed by a Human Frontier Science Program postdoctoral fellowship on “Light signal integration” at the Salk Institute, California. She joined the Institute of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology at the University of Glasgow as a Lord Kelvin Adam Smith Fellow in 2013, received tenure in 2016 and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2019, just before the onset of her maternity leave. Her research focuses on investigating “How light and temperature control plant development at the transcriptional level”. In addition to directing a research group, she acts as a course coordinator, teaches and supervises students on subjects related to molecular, cellular and plant biology. She is a member of professional committees, editorial boards and mentoring schemes, and promotes knowledge exchange by participating in international conferences and science communication events. Recorded at the Gatsby Plant Science Summer School, 2021. #plantscience #genetics #foodsecurity