Doug Orr

C460- From Kranz to Crops: Celebrating 60 Years of C4 Discovery and Innovation

23-25 July 2026 at Lancaster University, UK

Generously funded by @annbot.bsky.social , @newphyt.bsky.social, @plantspeopleplanet.bsky.social, @westsyduhie.bsky.social and others! 🧪🌱

registration.lancaster.ac.uk/C460

Potential drivers of fast growth in #Paulownia

#Review by Yang Zhao and @marjorielundgren.bsky.social

nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

@lancasteruni.bsky.social @lancasterplantbio.bsky.social

#LatestIssue #PlantScience

a group of sea turtles are swimming in the ocean with the words oh boy this is gonna be good i can tell below them ALT: a group of sea turtles are swimming in the ocean with the words oh boy this is gonna be good i can tell below them

Me arriving for my monthly dose of plant science chats:

Great to have our monthly 'Plant Science chat' gathering this week, short updates from across topics and experience levels in Plant Biology @lancasteruni.bsky.social
We had exciting updates from 3 PhD researchers ranging from seed priming, Rubisco inhibition, to seagrass photosynthesis.
🌱🍃🌊

News flash nerds: hornworts are awesome

Just over a month left for applications to NorthWestBio Doctoral Programme, with several exciting plant projects available @lancasteruni.bsky.social including a #photosynthesis project with @marjorielundgren.bsky.social
Details below for you or your networks!

About 2 weeks left to apply for this great #PhD #photosynthesis #Rubisco opportunity with @ecarmosilva.bsky.social @lancasteruni.bsky.social !

Fantastic to have @tinaschreier.bsky.social here this week for a visit and super seminar this afternoon. Amazing science and images of plasmodesmata, unravelling new things about C4 to help our fundamental understanding and identify ways to improve photosynthesis in key crops. Thanks Tina!

🚨 Funded PhD Studentship 🚨
Antibody Engineering & Plant Molecular Farming for Aquaculture Health
📍 Lancaster & Glasgow | BBSRC NWBio DTP
🗓 Apply by 21 Nov 2025
👉 Engineer antibodies vs Vibrio
👉 Develop rapid diagnostics
👉 Explore plant-based biologics for fish health

Well I guess that probably does lead one to a drink...

Great to have our annual Plant Biology PGR Symposium yesterday! Fantastic talks and discussions by our current PGR students, and a great intro for the new MRes and PhD researchers joining us for thier Plant Adventure!
Great event including 🍕 and discussions after.

Fantastic oppurtunity for a PhD project centred around the activity and regulation of my personal favourite enzyme Rubisco, with an awesome supervisor @ecarmosilva.bsky.social, and supported by the Gatsby Foundation. @sci-tech-lancaster.bsky.social @lancasteruni.bsky.social

FindAPhD : NorthWestBio Fully Funded Doctoral Training Programme Studentship 2026 at University of Glasgow Apply for a PhD: NorthWestBio Fully Funded Doctoral Training Programme Studentship 2026 at University of Glasgow

Lots of cool projects available for this BBSRC funded Doctoral Landscape Award: full details here: www.findaphd.com/phds/program...

Stef Menzies @menzieslab.bsky.social @blslancasteruni.bsky.social is leading a project with Martin Llewellyn (Glasgow) and I looking at antibody engineering and different ways to deliver these in aquaculture settings, including some plant engineering! www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...

Nick Robinson @blslancasteruni.bsky.social is leading a project involving Bobby Graham (Belfast) and myself to do some really cool discovery and applied work involving Asgard Archea, proteasomes, and plants! www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...

@marjorielundgren.bsky.social has a project in partnership with Nick Birse at Queen's University Belfast, looking into climate change impacts on nutritional quality in different crops, and how this could be linked to photosynthetic type. www.gla.ac.uk/postgraduate...

Interested in a 4 year fully funded PhD, based at Lancaster @lancasteruni.bsky.social and working with other Universities via NorthWestBio? Does that interest include photosynthesis and/or plant engineering?
Well, step right up! Open to UK & non-UK people, 2026 projects include 3 I am a part of:

FindAPhD : NorthWestBio Fully Funded Doctoral Training Programme Studentship 2026 at University of Glasgow Apply for a PhD: NorthWestBio Fully Funded Doctoral Training Programme Studentship 2026 at University of Glasgow

New #PhD opportunities! NorthWestBio projects now online for 2026! Including a #photosynthesis project w/ @marjorielundgren.bsky.social looking at how photosynthetic diversity may affect future crop nutrient quality. Plant projects and the full set of projects available here: tinyurl.com/529yz4jd

The Function, Evolution, and Future of Carboxysomes Abstract. Since their discovery as rubisco-containing compartments more than 50 years ago, significant breakthroughs have advanced our understanding of car

We really enjoyed putting together this Darwin Review for JXB. Fun to think about how carboxysomes work and why plants don't have them.

@jxbotany.bsky.social

Function, Evolution, and Future of Carboxysomes url: academic.oup.com/jxb/article-...

👀 Watch this space for upcoming PhD project(s)!

We hope to be able to share details of some #photosynthesis and #plantengineering PhD projects very soon, for starting in Oct 2026 here @lancasteruni.bsky.social

These will be open to UK and International students, more details to come!

a man in a suit and tie is standing in front of an emergency exit only sign ALT: a man in a suit and tie is standing in front of an emergency exit only sign

When a PhD student slacks you with super cool confocal z-stack gifs late in the day:

We are a proud sponsor of CO2 Assimilation in Plants from Genome to Biome: Probing Mechanisms Across Scales Gordon Research Conference
June 8 - 13, 2025 | Newry, Maine
register here: www.grc.org/co2-assimila... #PlantScience #PlantSciEvents

Making the most of sunshine Photosynthesis Research at the Lancaster Environment Centre

Just over a week left to apply for a 3yr postdoc with me at Lancaster @lancasterplantbio.bsky.social looking at Rubisco engineering in vitro and in vivo to improve plant #photosynthesis #plantscijobs wp.lancs.ac.uk/lancsphotosy...

Promotional postcard to advertise the JXB 75th Anniversary Symposium, to be held in Edinburgh fro 17-19th September 2025. The invited speakers are listed, as well as some highlights from the program. The images show an oak tree, leaf and acorn.

Registration is open for JXB's 75th Anniversary Symposium
🌱
We have plenty of speaker slots for ECRs & lots of opportunity to network
🌳
There's a conference dinner at The Caves & workshops for ECRs
🌾
Sign up now to join us in Edinburgh in September, places are limited: bit.ly/JXB75

#plantscience 🧪

This post is now online, for full details on how to apply please see: wp.lancs.ac.uk/lancsphotosy...

Excited to share that I'll soon be recruiting a 3 year postdoc to join the lab @lancasterplantbio.bsky.social to work with me on Rubisco biochemistry and engineering. Official advertising details to be released very soon, watch this space! Please spread the word. 😀🌱🧪🥼

A woman in a lab space works with a pipette. Her arms are under a protective bar and she is surrounded by standard lab equipment.

RIPE researchers from @lancasteruni.bsky.social wrote a chapter in the latest volume of Methods in Enzymology, providing a protocol for using radiometric assays to measure Rubisco in plant leaves.

Read more about their work here: bit.ly/3XzXW5h