Engineering Efficiency in Photosynthesis

Increasing efficiency in photosynthesis has been one of the desired goals of plant biology.  A recent paper in the journal Science presents work by a team led by Dr. Stephen Long from the University of Illinois/University of Lancaster.  By overexpressing three genes in tobacco, the plants were able to increase carbon assimilation, showing that there are mechanisms to improve the process.  We discuss the paper, but also its extensions into food security, climate change and future fuels.  Dr. Long’s website is here and his Gate’s foundation project is here.

Dr. Long also had strong ties to Dr. Sharon Gray, the UC Davis postdoctoral researcher who we tragically lost in a horrible situation in Ethiopia.  Her family has developed a memorial fund to raise support toward scholarships for women in science.  Please consider a donation, even a small one.  If everyone downloading this podcast contributed even a few dollars the fund could almost double. I’d love to see it hit $1 million and provide beautiful impacts to others, to honor the memory of Dr. Gray.

https://www.gofundme.com/SharonBethGray
 
Also, Chelsea Boonstra and The Boonstra Report.

# COLABRA
Talking Biotech is brought to you by Colabra – an R&D platform that brings your lab’s world-changing research together in one shared space. Learn more at https://www.colabra.app/

# TALKING BIOTECH
Twitter: https://twitter.com/talkingbiotech
Website: https://www.colabra.app/podcasts/talking-biotech/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colabrahq

The Talking Biotech podcast is distinct from Dr. Kevin Folta's teaching and research roles at the University of Florida. The views expressed on the show are those of Dr. Folta and his guests, and do not reflect the opinions of the university or Colabra.