Plant Environmental Physiology Group
The Plant Environmental Physiology Group (PEPG) is one of the special interest groups
(SIGs) within the British Ecological Society and the Society for Experimental Biology.
Plant environmental physiology represents the study of short-term acclimation and
long-term adaptation of plants to changing environmental conditions. Our traditional
goal has been to integrate leaf and plant- level responses to biotic and abiotic stress
under field and laboratory conditions. Increasingly, our focus has been either to set
molecular physiology in an ecological context, or to provide a basis for scaling root and
shoot level responses to canopy, ecosystem and region in the context of climate change,
whether for crops or natural vegetation.
Our remit is to:
•
Advance and promote the science and practice of plant environmental
physiology
•
Integrate the plant environmental physiology community and research
opportunities within and outside the BES and SEB
•
Support, train and liaise with young plant environmental physiologists
The group holds its Annual General Meeting at the BES Annual Meeting - the PEP group
is an informal group for physiologists of all ages and career stages, with as much
emphasis on social interaction as on academic subjects. It is an excellent forum for
meeting people working in similar fields, for socialising as well as general networking.
Members interested in holding conferences, meetings, workshops or field meetings can
apply through the Group Secretary for BES financial assistance and support for student
attendance.
The main secretary is Prof. Howard Griffiths ([email protected]), with Dr Colin Osborne
([email protected]) being the group secretary within the SEB and Dr Matt
Davey ([email protected]) within the BES.
The PEP website and email discussion list is still popular (with nearly 300 members
worldwide this ensures a response to your emails whatever time of day or night you
send it!). Messages posted to the list are automatically forwarded to all members.
Messages may include research questions/methodology and information, discussion
and requests, news of future meetings and PhD/job advertisements. To sign up follow
the instructions at: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=env-physiol
http://plantenvironmentalphysiology.group.shef.ac.uk/
PEPG NEWS:
This year saw the reintroduction of the International Workshop on Plant Environmental
Physiology techniques in Lisbon, Portugal. It was a huge success with nearly 100 people
being involved during the week. There is a more detailed report elsewhere in this issue.
Due to the high global demand for places on this workshop we hope to repeat the
workshop in 2014 – we want to make this THE International workshop to attend if you
study plant environmental physiology watch this space for details!
BES Main meeting – Birmingham December 2012
After the success of our PEPG botanic gardens tour at last year’s BES main meeting in
Sheffield, this year we have organised a short free tour of Birmingham’s botanic garden
during the Wednesday lunch time (19th December) to promote the PEPG. Even though
the garden is on campus it is quite a walk from the University square, so we will
organise a minibus pickup to and from the garden on the day (you are welcome to bring
your lunch!). Spaces will be limited and you can book a place at the registration desk,
but if you want a guaranteed place please email Matt Davey ([email protected]) before
the 10th December. http://www.birminghambotanicalgardens.org.uk/
We also plan to go out for dinner on the Wednesday evening – details to follow on the
email or facebook page!
2nd Annual BES – PEPG mini symposium 2013
After the success of the 1st symposium in London we are going to hold our second PEP
mini-symposium at the University of Manchester (9th-10th September 2013). Dr Giles
Johnsone [email protected] is the local organiser. Details of the meeting
will be posted on our website, mailing list and Facebook page in Spring 2013.
New PEPG Steering Committee Members:
As the popularity and needs of the group is expanding, we are delighted to welcome
three new steering committee members of the PEPG. Carla Turner from Sheffield
University is our new communications officer – so please contact her with news and
events you would like advertising on our website, email list and Carla’s new PEPG
Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/PlantEnvironmentalPhysiologyGroup please ‘like’ us!
Lucy Rowland from Edinburgh University is our Postdoc rep and Zoe Harris from
Southampton University is our Postgraduate rep so please contact them with any
ideas, news or information requests related to MSc, PhD or postdoc research and life.
We also welcome Marjorie Lundgren at Sheffield University and Richard Webster at
Aberystwyth University who have joined as a general steering committee member and
event organiser. Photos, interests and contact details of the new members are below:
Carla Turner: Hello, I am Carla a third year PhD student
in Professor Julie Gray’s lab at Sheffield University. My main interests are understanding
transpiration and what happens when transpiration is altered. My PhD work is based on
looking at physiological and morphological difference in Arabidopsis thaliana which
have altered stomatal densities. Outside of my PhD I have a lot of fun as part of Science
Brainwaves where we aim to communicate science to a wider audience.
[email protected]
Dr Lucy Rowland: I am a PDRA at the University of
Edinburgh working on a project funded by NERC, investigating how drought increases
the risk of increased mortality in tropical forest trees. My research focuses on how
sensitive tropical trees are to changes in climate and I explore this using a combination
of field experiments and environmental modelling. My PhD research, completed at the
University of Edinburgh, explored how sensitive forest sites across the Amazon are to
changes in soil moisture and atmospheric temperature. [email protected]
Zoe Harris: The research which I am undertaking for my PhD
at the University of Southampton involves an assessment of the environmental impacts
of a conversion from ex-set aside grassland to short rotation coppice (SRC) willow for
bioenergy, funded by the Energy Technologies Institute. The techniques I will be using
include eddy covariance for ecosystem carbon dioxide flux, gas measurements for soil
greenhouse gas flux and soil sampling for effects on microbial communities. This
research will hope to assess the long term viability of bioenergy crops in a UK context
and forms part of a network of sites across the UK looking to answer similar questions
in different conversions and bioenergy systems. [email protected]
Marjorie Lungren: I am a second year PhD
student in Colin Osborne's lab at the University of Sheffield studying the evolution of
photosynthesis. I am broadly interested in plant eco-physiology and evolution. I
recently worked at Mendel Biotechnology (California, USA) where I researched the
physiology underpinning yield advantages in modified Arabidopsis thaliana lines.
Previously, I studied the role that phenotypic plasticity plays in evolution of weedy
Polygonum plants in my Masters Degree with Sonia Sultan at Wesleyan University
(Connecticut, USA) and how environmental and anthropogenic factors contribute to
invasive species abundance in my Bachelors Degree at Connecticut College.
[email protected]
Dr Richard Webster: Biorenewable fuels, Photosynthesis and
Global Change Biology. I am interested in the way in which terrestrial and aquatic plants
photosynthesise, and how this complicated array of processes is influenced by climate change
drivers such as increasing CO2 and tropospheric ozone concentrations, and changes to
temperature and rainfall patterns. I am also interested in biorenewable fuels that can be used
to maximise our ability to utilise available natural resources to provide energy and
compounds. This can be implemented in a manner that is conducive to habitat
restoration/protection and has long term sustainability. [email protected]
May we also take this opportunity to remind you to promote the PEP group with
academic colleagues, postdocs and PhD/MSc students etc whether starting this year, or
by now well established. Encourage them to visit the website and sign up to the jiscmail
email forum at:
<http://plantenvironmentalphysiology.group.shef.ac.uk/> or directly at:
<https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=env-physiol>
And join the new Facebook page at:
http://www.facebook.com/PlantEnvironmentalPhysiologyGroup
Matt Davey ([email protected])
Howard Griffiths
Colin Osborne