Major grant to probe how plant cells communicate
Dr Matthew Terry has been awarded a £500,000 grant from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) for a three year project to research how information is transmitted within plant cells.
In particular, he will examine the mechanism of communication between chloroplasts and the nucleus, one of the signalling pathways that is still poorly understood.
"Solar energy is the only significant source of new energy for our planet," he explains. "The process of photosynthesis in chloroplasts can harvest this energy and we need to understand exactly how photosynthetic cells communicate and function if we are to develop better bio-energy systems."
Professor Alison Smith who works in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge will also share in the award. Dr Michael Page has been appointed the postdoctoral researcher on the project.