Research area:
We investigate how environmental perturbations affect plant function. Current research focusses on the effects of rapid dehydration and chilling on photosynthetic CO₂ assimilation, driven by the coupling of energy metabolism – limited by nitrogen, CO₂ and phosphate availability – with transport, integrating stomatal function and water movement through the plant. We use controlled growth conditions and laboratory experiments combining gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence, stable-isotope analysis, and measurements of plant water relations. We develop mathematical models linking light harvesting with carbon metabolism, xylem and phloem transport, and instantaneous growth, to interpret results and predict plant performance under the increasingly variable conditions of past, present, and future climates.