The Plant Institute connects researchers from diverse fields to study all aspects of plants: from their evolutionary histories, genetics, and physical structures to the other organisms that interact with them, on scales ranging from the molecular to global. Our approach consciously encourages cross-disciplinary efforts to conduct innovative, groundbreaking research and prepares future scientists to investigate the most important questions facing a changing planet.
Plant Institute
Promoting interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation in all aspects of plant-based scientific investigation
News
Research team to study food resilience in the face of catastrophic global events
An interdisciplinary team of Penn State professors has received $3 million from Open Philanthropy to study food resilience in the face of potentially catastrophic global events.
Plants pass on 'memory' of stress to some progeny, making them more resilient
By manipulating the expression of one gene, geneticists can induce a form of “stress memory” in plants that is inherited by some progeny, giving them the potential for more vigorous, hardy and productive growth, according to Penn State researchers, who suggest the discovery has significant implications for plant breeding.
Bryant honored with Kettering Award for excellence in photosynthesis research
Donald A. Bryant, Ernest C. Pollard Professor of Biotechnology and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Penn State, has been awarded the Charles F. Kettering Award from the American Society of Plant Biologists. The award was established by an endowment from the Kettering Foundation in 1962 and recognizes meritorious work in photosynthesis.