C-SPIRIT

We're pleased to share the MSU Plant Resilience Institute's 2026 Annual Report! Over the past fiscal year, PRI continued laying the foundation for our next decade of discovery through high-impact research, community growth, and more. Explore our 2026 report: plantresilience.msu.edu/about/annual...

New C-SPIRIT Publication! ❄️🔬 Congrats to C-SPIRIT researchers from SunMoon University and KOPRI on the publication of their study of an Antarctic bacterium that breaks down starch and cellulose even at 4°C, offering insights into stress resilience. 🧬🌱 🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s002... #plantscience

Save the date! 🌿 The next Great Lakes Plant Science Conference will be held jointly with the 2027 ASPB Midwest Meeting, taking place April 9-11, 2027, in Lansing, MI! More information will be shared soon at: midwest.aspb.org/meeting #PlantSciMidwest27 #PlantScience

New C-SPIRIT publication! 🔬 Researchers at Sun Moon University identified a potential formaldehyde detoxification pathway in cold-adapted bacteria, revealing genetic mechanisms that may help them survive environmental stress. ❄️🌱 Read more: doi.org/10.1007/s007... #plantscience

Registration is now open for the 2027 Gordon Research Conference on Desiccation Tolerance Across Life! Join researchers exploring anhydrobiosis, desiccation survival, and the mechanisms that allow life to persist without water. www.grc.org/desiccation-...

🌱 The Moghe Lab at Cornell University is hiring a Postdoctoral Associate to study specialized plant metabolites using LC-MS metabolomics and biochemistry. The role supports research on plant chemistry, function, and resilience. Apply by Nov 30! 🔗 academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/33087 #plantscience

We are ONE MONTH AWAY from the 2nd Annual VIRTUAL WALII Symposium! Make sure to register now! walii.science/2nd-virtual-... #LifeWithoutWater #WALII2026

🌱 Last week, C-SPIRIT welcomed NSF representatives to MSU for our Global Centers Site Visit! Through research presentations, posters, and discussions, our team highlighted progress and international collaborations advancing plant resilience. 🔬 #plantscience

📬 Our September C-SPIRIT Newsletter is out! 🌱 Meet the Graham Lab, explore our University of Manitoba feature, check out the new BAR Single Cell Data Portal, and catch up on publications, events & more! 🔬🧬 📖 createsend.com/t/y-F2F2F5F3... Subscribe here: forms.gle/hWQycasrts2m... #plantscience

📖 New C-SPIRIT publication! C-SPIRIT members Woo-Haeng Lee, So-Ra Han, Tae-Jin Oh & collaborators characterized a novel enzyme that can produce bioactive methylated flavonoids. 🌿🧬 🔗 doi.org/10.1007/s120... #plantscience

Invited Speaker Dr. Olivia Carmo will be giving a talk on “Unfurling Mechanisms of Desiccation Tolerance: An Ultrastructural Perspective” at the 2nd virtual WALII Symposium. Register to hear the talk & submit an abstract to present: walii.science/2nd-virtual-...

Exciting progress at MSU! 🌱 The Rhee Lab’s new semi-field research site is ready for C-SPIRIT pennycress experiments investigating plant responses to drought and candidate compounds. We can’t wait to see C-SPIRIT research take root here! #plantscience

🌱 Happy National Postdoc Appreciation Week! 🔬 We’re celebrating C-SPIRIT’s postdocs and the creativity, expertise & dedication they bring to our international community. 🌎🌿 Thank you for helping advance plant science and build a more resilient future! 💚 #plantscience

🍅 C-SPIRIT member Gregg Howe recently spoke with PNAS about his career studying plant-herbivore interactions, jasmonate signaling, and how plants balance growth and defense. Read the Q&A: doi.org/10.1073/pnas... #plantscience

🏆 Congratulations to C-SPIRIT Japan lead Motoaki Seki on receiving the 2026 JSPB Award for Distinguished Research from the Japanese Society for Plant Biotechnology! His work explores plant responses to environmental stress and supports the development of more resilient plants. 🌱 #plantscience

🦠 VIEWPOINT 🦠 Rhizosphere microbes actively shape plant stress perception and signaling, integrating abiotic and biotic responses and enabling microbiome-assisted resilience, offering a new framework for breeding stress-adapted crops- Araujo et al. 🔗 doi.org/10.1093/jxb/... #PlantScience 🧪

🌱 Field prep is underway at MSU! The Rhee Lab assembled raised beds and continued preparing the site for C-SPIRIT pennycress research. The beds will support upcoming semi-field drought and compound experiments—and future studies too. 🛠️🌿 #plantscience

New C-SPIRIT publication! 📖🧬 C-SPIRIT researchers and collaborators sequenced the genome of an Arctic Sphingobacterium, revealing genes linked to degradation of the organic pollutant benzoate. 🌎🔬 🔗 doi.org/10.1128/mra.... #plantscience

Don't forget to join us ONE WEEK FROM TODAY for the Anhydrobiosis Research, Tools & Techniques Webinar Series on September 10 with Dr. Jill Farrant! Learn more and register: bit.ly/4uDLobX

Join the MSU Plant Resilience Institute as a Scientific Program Manager, providing strategic leadership for the institute's portfolio of center grants and major research initiatives! 🔗 Learn more and apply: careers.msu.edu/jobs/scienti... #Hiring #PlantSciJobs #SciAdmin

📖 New C-SPIRIT publication! Congrats to Kamal Prasad Regmi, Prakash Paudel, Woo-Haeng Lee & Tae-Jin Oh of Sun Moon University & collaborators on their new study exploring enzyme-driven steroid modification and its potential for biocatalysis. 🔬🧬 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.ij... #plantscience

🎉 Congratulations, Bri! 🌱 Rhee Lab member Bri Hashim has successfully passed her Ph.D. qualifying exam! Bri studies plant resilience as a graduate student in MSU’s Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology. 🔬🌿 We’re excited to celebrate this milestone! 👏🎓 #PlantScience

📬 Our August 2026 C-SPIRIT Newsletter is out now! This month: a Glassmire Lab Spotlight, a Sun Moon University feature, new member publications, upcoming events, and recent social media highlights. 🌱 🔗 createsend.com/t/y-ACB98C1E... Subscribe here: forms.gle/hWQycasrts2m... #plantscience

We are so excited to announce that applications are now being accepted for the 2027 Single-Cell Approaches in Plant Biology Gordon Research Conference! Learn More and Apply Now! www.grc.org/single-cell-...

Our Anhydrobiosis Research, Tools & Techniques Webinar Series continues on September 10 with Dr. Jill Farrant from the University of Cape Town's talk "Understanding Vegetative Desiccation Tolerance as a Tool for Climate Smart Agriculture." Learn more and register: bit.ly/4uDLobX

MSU Plant Resilience Institute Research Specialist Karine Prado spoke with @davidcondos.bsky.social at @kuer.org about how a native Death Valley plant is helping the @rheelab.bsky.social uncover how life can flourish in extreme heat, unlocking a potential blueprint for more heat-resilient crops.

We’re #hiring! The Michigan State University Plant Resilience Institute is seeking an experienced and collaborative Business & Human Resources Administrator to join our team. 🔗 Learn more and apply: careers.msu.edu/jobs/busines... #HumanResources #HRJobs #BusinessAdmin #Jobs

The Topp lab at the MSU Plant Resilience Institute is #hiring a project administrator for a new multi-institutional research effort focused on engineering synchronized nitrogen efficiency traits in corn agriculture. #PlantSciJobs #SciAdmin 🌽 Learn more and apply: careers.msu.edu/jobs/project...

🥔 This week, the MSU C-SPIRIT team has been busy harvesting potatoes from our greenhouse experiment! The team is connecting above-ground plant traits with tuber development to better understand how potatoes respond to heat stress. #PlantScience

The MSU Plant Resilience Institute is excited to welcome @bobvanburen.bsky.social as our new associate director! A PRI faculty member since 2016, VanBuren brings scientific excellence and a deep commitment to our community to the role. 🌱 Learn more: plantresilience.msu.edu/pri-news/202...

🌱 C-SPIRIT members Sue Rhee (Michigan State University), Motoaki Seki (RIKEN CSRS) & Nicola Patron (University of Cambridge) will be speaking at OIST, Nov. 16–18! 📅 Register by Aug. 31. Please note that participation is limited to 100 attendees! 🔗 www.oist.jp/events/plant... #plantscience

Today, we celebrated two new Rhee Lab members with a welcome lunch at Sindhu! 🎉 Dr. Henry Nvenankeng joins us as a Postdoctoral Scholar, and Dr. Huiqiao Pan as a Lab Manager/Research Assistant. 🔬 Welcome to the Rhee Lab, Henry and Huiqiao! We’re so happy to have you on the team! 💚 #plantscience

📖 New C-SPIRIT publication! C-SPIRIT members Yuki Hayashi, Toshinori Kinoshita, Farhan Aziz, & Motoaki Seki as well as their collaborators show how synthetic ion channel inhibitors can promote stomatal closure and enhance drought tolerance in plants. 🌱💧 🔗 doi.org/10.1038/s414... #PlantScience

Mark your calendars!! We are excited to announce the date for this year's WALII Virtual Symposium on November 12, 2026! More details will be shared soon!

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY! Dr. Michael Menze will present "From Anhydrobiosis to Biomedical Innovation: Borrowing Nature's Survival Strategies." Read the abstract and register here: bit.ly/4uDLobX #Anhydrobiosis #Science #LifeWithoutWater

📖 New C-SPIRIT publication! C-SPIRIT members Minoru Ueda, Motoaki Seki & collaborators reveal how HDA19-regulated histone H3.3 acetylation promotes LEA protein accumulation and salt tolerance in Arabidopsis, advancing research on plant resilience. 🌱🧬 🔗 doi.org/10.1073/pnas... #PlantScience

📬 C-SPIRIT News: June & July 2026 Our latest issue looks back at the 2026 All-Hands Meeting, spotlights the Kusano Lab and teams at Guelph and RIKEN, and shares new publications, upcoming events and social media posts from across the Center. 🌱 🔗 createsend.com/t/y-37E18AEB... #plantscience

New C-SPIRIT publication! 🍅🌱 C-SPIRIT members Toon Suzuki and Hiroshi Ezura, with Mariko Takayama (University of Tsukuba), found that enhanced GABA biosynthesis helped tomatoes maintain yield while increasing GABA and dry matter under salt stress. 🧂 📖 doi.org/10.1002/pei3... #plantscience

We are seeking a field research technician for the Great Lakes Advanced Climate Impact & Experimental Research Center (GLACIER) to coordinate day-to-day field and greenhouse experiments related to plant responses to climate stress! #PlantSciJobs Apply now: careers.msu.edu/jobs/field-r...

🌍 It's World Nature Conservation Day! 🌱 Today reminds us that protecting nature means investing in a more sustainable future. At C-SPIRIT, we support that mission by discovering plant- and microbe-derived compounds that help crops thrive under environmental stress. 💚 #plantscience

🌱 New C-SPIRIT Publication! 📚 Congrats to C-SPIRIT member Jun Hyuck Lee and colleagues on their new paper in Fitoterapia! 🎉 They identified five previously undescribed compounds from Antarctic moss, including one with promising bioactivity. 🌿 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.fi... #PlantScience

Murphy Zabala shares C-SPIRIT potato research at MSU 🌱 At MidSURE, MSU’s undergrad research symposium, Murphy presented work on variety-specific growth and physiological responses in potatoes. Murphy is an REU student from Cuyahoga Community College working in Ola Skirycz’s lab! #plantscience

🌱🧬 G proteins link growth, yield, and stress defense, but pleiotropy creates trade-offs. This review dissects their regulation and offers strategies to decouple and boost both traits for climate-resilient breeding. #plantscience @jipb.bsky.social onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Yesterday, WALII's Dr. Sue Rhee presented her talk, "Aradbidopsis thaliana RHAMNOSE 1 Condensate Formation Drives UDP-rhamnose Synthesis" at the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) meeting in Ottawa, Canada! #ASPB #ASPB2026 @rheelab.bsky.social

Congratulations to Hui-Kyong Cho and Hatem Rouached (@hatem-rouached.bsky.social) of Michigan State University as well as their collaborators on their new article “Coumarins link iron deficiency to TOR inhibition in plants” published in Current Biology! 🌿🔬 🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.cu... #PlantScience

Did you miss Dr. Matt Stata’s workshop on "Exploring the Many Applications of RNA-seq Data"? Watch it here: youtu.be/Q7ZBBOXxxLE And keep an eye out for more details of Dr. Michael Menze’s talk on August 13, 2027! Learn more here: bit.ly/4uDLobX