Independent Research Groups

We study two major aspects of plant development: how it is shaped by spatiotemporal patterns of hormone signaling, and what are the ultimate cellular functions activated by hormones that lead to cell fates as disparate as proliferation, elongation or degeneration.

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We are performing comparative studies between the perennial Arabis alpina and the annual Arabidopsis thaliana to understand the molecular mechanisms that drove life strategy evolution within the Brassicaceae. [more]

We investigate molecular processes and proteins involved in transport of metabolites through cellular membranes. By this we aim to improve plant disease control and to increase crop yield of maize and rice.

We investigate the genetic basis of phenotypic differences between the emerging model species Cardamine hirsuta and its relative Arabidopsis thaliana and examine the evolutionary processes underlying such differences. We focus on petal number variation and explosive pod shatter, which are traits found in C. hirsuta but not A. thaliana, and use parallel genetic studies to investigate the evolution of developmental processes controlling these traits.

The plant phyllosphere faces a broad range of harsh abiotic fluctuations such as strong radiation by sunlight, severe dryness alternating with raindrops hitting the leaves, wind and temperature fluctuations. [more]

Studies of the same process in different organisms reveal important basic features as well as adaptations to special functions. We focused on two model plants greatly differing in phylogenetic position [more]

We have focused our attention on the mechanisms controlling the initiation of lateral meristems. Our studies started with the characterization of two tomato mutants, lateral suppressor (ls) and blind (bl)

The von Korff group uses natural genetic variation and quantitative genetics to unravel the genetic control of reproductive development in barley.