Amino acid metabolism in plant development and environmental interactions

Amino acids are involved in several physiological processes apart from constituting proteins. Plant amino acid metabolism strongly reacts to challenges caused by both, biotic as well as abiotic stress conditions and provides a diverse set of signaling and defense compounds. Using a combination of biochemical and omics approaches we aim to identify presently unknown reaction steps in amino acid metabolism as well as the biochemical mechanisms of amino acid sensing and signaling.

Our group is embedded in the Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS), part of the TRR 341 "Plant Ecological Genetics" and associated with the International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS).