The Food Fix: Superplants, Microbe Sidekicks and Nutrient Heroes

04/30/2021 | Health

Transatlantic tandem talk on 4 May at 18:00 CEST (5 pm GMT / 12 pm EST). Global food systems are under pressure on a scale previously unencountered. A crisis is looming, fueled by population growth, climate change, water scarcity, energy supply and now the pandemic. The world must feed an estimated population of 9 billion by 2050 with diminishing natural resources while also ensuring the health of people and the planet.

The New York Office of the University of Cologne in cooperation with the DWIH NY (Deutsches Wissenschafts- und Innovationshaus, German Science and Innovation House in New York) are bringing together Alga Zuccaro and Mechthild Tegeder to discuss emerging technologies in microbes and genetic tools which could help to solve the global nutrition problem. This event is part of the Transatlantic Tandem Talks series.

Join the event on Tuesday, May 4th at 18:00 CEST (5 pm GMT / 12 pm EST).

Please register here:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-food-fix-superplants-microbe-sidekicks-and-nutrient-heroes-registration-151709528283

Establishing food security requires a deeper understanding of how plants work, the function and health of ecological and agricultural systems and projected plant responses to climate change and other environmental stresses. Explore these topics together with us.

The event will be moderated by Dr. Eva Bosbach (Executive Director of the University of Cologne New York Office). Starting off there will be opening remarks from Dr. Ing. Georg Bechtold (Program Director, DFG Office North America) and Dr. Katrin DiPaola (Program Manager DWIH New York).

 

Alga Zuccaro is Professor of Microbial Ecological Genetics at the Institute for Plant Sciences at the University of Cologne and the coordinator of the research area on plant microbiota metabolic networks and edaphic adaptation at the Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS). Zuccaro is an international expert in fungal effector biology, fungal-root symbioses and evolution research. Understanding the function of effectors secreted by beneficial root symbionts and identifying their plant and microbial targets are currently priority areas for her research. Zuccaro’s team has made substantial contributions to the understanding of root-microbe interactions and the balance between pathogenesis and mutualism.

Mechthild Tegeder is the Herbert L. Eastlick Distinguished Professor in Plant Molecular Physiology at the School of Biological Sciences at Washington State University. Dr. Tegeder is an international leader in plant nitrogen research and has been at the forefront of fundamental research on amino acid and ureide transporter function in plants. Dr. Tegeder and co-workers have identified key players in nitrogen partitioning from soil to seeds and discovered that changes in nitrogen transport strongly affect primary metabolism and lead the physiological adjustments at the whole plant level. An overall goal of Dr. Tegeder’s research is to improve plant performance, food yields and nutritional quality by altering nutrient allocation within the plant.

 

 

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