Research conducted by the laboratory focus on (1) plant responses to climatic extremes at different organisational levels and (2) search for innovative tools to improve the quality of economic plants.
Extreme climatic conditions alter the growth and development of plants, thus shaping more profound changes in natural and economic ecosystems. New processes and new invasions are creating new challenges for ecosystems. The increasing likelihood and severity of extreme weather events is greatly increasing the risk of losing the productivity of economic ecosystems. Adaptation to the current changing climatic conditions, such as increased rainfall, higher summer temperatures, severe early frosts and water scarcity, is essential to avoid potential economic losses. Therefore, reliable research on responses of plant growth and development to changing climatic conditions can ensure the development of new technologies and tools to increase the resilience of plants to climate change (with an emphasis on environmental friendliness). To this end, climate modelling schemes are used to develop tools to control plant growth and development under climate change.
The laboratory carries out studies on plant hormonal system, metabolism, active and passive translocation of cell membranes and gene expression, by conducting qualitative and quantitative assessments of plant adaptation to salinity, waterlogging, drought, osmotic stress, chilling and acidity conditions and by researching innovative measures to improve the quality of economic plants. In this field, we collaborate with scientists from the Institute of Plant Physiology and Genetics of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, M.G. Kholodny Botanical Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany, and the University of Helsinki, Finland.
