Invited lecture at the Nankai University, Tianjin, China

Stephan is invited to give a lecture at the 14th of July 2015 at the Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China. Very excited to meet many new people and to establish new scientific connections.

Title:

New insights into jasmonate – auxin crosstalk and its influence on lignification

Summary:

Plant growth and development largely depends on the coordinated interplay of a small number of signaling molecules, referred to as plant or phytohormones. A high number of studies published over recent years have provided mounting evidence that plant hormones work jointly, rather than isolated, in orchestrating developmentally programmed growth processes as well as environmentally stimulated plant responses to both abiotic and biotic stresses. Our latest work aimed at providing deeper insight into jasmonate/auxin crosstalk, two on the first sight antagonistic phytohormones, and at shedding light on the involvement of auxin in plant stress responses. Taking both an in-depth targeted and a systems biology approach, we were able to provide evidence for the intimate crosstalk between those two plant hormones and to point out a number of specific processes that are triggered by the jasmonate-induced overproduction of auxin. Alongside to our proclaimed fundamental research objectives, we were additionally able to identify some very promising starting points for biotechnological approaches, which will also be briefly discussed.