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Powering the Planet

The conversion of light energy into chemical by photosynthesis yields approximately 100 terawatts of power annually: six times the power consumption of human civilization!

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Much To Learn

The best-studied plant species is an experimental mustard plant called Arabidopsis thaliana. Despite generations of research, we only know what about 20 percent of its genes do.

Toward a Sustainable Future

Plant science will be crucial for solving many of society’s most-pressing demands and Carnegie researchers are stepping up to the challenge.

Plants can convert the Sun’s energy into chemical energy—sugars and fats—using a biochemical process called photosynthesis. This series of reactions shaped our planet’s atmosphere, forms the baseline of our entire food supply, and sequesters about a quarter of the carbon pollution released by human activity.

This means that plant science is crucial for helping humanity prepare for and mitigate the coming difficulties, including fighting hunger, promoting renewable energy, and combatting climate change. But to accomplish this, we need to understand the mechanisms underpinning plant growth, development, environmental responses, and adaptation.

Every day, Carnegie biologists use a variety of cutting-edge approaches to answer these crucial questions, and more, with the hope of building a foundation for a sustainable world.


Plant Research Will Unlock the Future

Explore our Plant Science research areas:

A grove of aspens with yellowing leaves.

Biodiversity & Climate

We investigate how individual species respond to stressful conditions and explore how we can build community resilience.

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Hot spring in Yellowstone National Park

Extreme Environments

We explore how life emerges and survives in extreme environments from cutting-edge investigations of deep sea vents and hot springs to lab-based recreations of planetary interiors.

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Microbial mats surround a hot spring in Yellowstone National Park

Nested Ecosystems

Recognizing that plants and animals rely on lifelong, co-evolved relationships with the microbial world, we explore interactions between microbial communities across a range of environments.

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Sorghum field

Photosynthesis

We study the biochemistry, molecular biology, physiology, and functionality of how plant cells respond to their environmental conditions and make cellular decisions, laying the foundation for advances in agriculture, sustainability, and climate resilience.

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Hawaiian bobtail squid purchased from Shutterstock

Symbiosis

We uncover the molecular mechanisms underpinning a variety of symbiotic relationships.

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