Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research

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Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research
Category: research Institute
Carrier: Max Planck Society
Legal form of the carrier: Registered association
Seat of the wearer: Munich
Facility location: Carl-von-Linné-Weg 10, Cologne
Type of research: Basic research
Subjects: Natural sciences
Areas of expertise: biology
Basic funding: Federal government (50%), states (50%)
Management: Miltos Tsiantis
Employee: approx. 350
Homepage: www.mpipz.mpg.de

The Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research ( MPIPZ ) in Cologne (until November 30, 2009 “Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research” (MPIZ)) is a German research institute in the field of molecular plant biology. It is part of the Max Planck Society and employs around 350 people.

The MPIPZ conducts basic molecular research on plants with the aim of developing effective breeding methods and environmentally friendly plant protection strategies for crops.

history

The institute for breeding research, initially founded and directed by the Kaiser Wilhelm Society for the Advancement of Science, has been continued by the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science since 1948. Since 1951 it has been called the Max Planck Institute for Breeding Research.

In 1927, the Kaiser Wilhelm Society decided to found an institute for breeding research in Müncheberg, east of Berlin, and to appoint Erwin Baur as its first director. Baur was a plant geneticist and is considered the founder of plant virology and the discoverer of plastid inheritance . He laid the foundation for the genetics of the snapdragon ( Antirrhinum ). Under his direction, new breeds such as the sweet lupine were created at the Müncheberg Institute. After Baur's death in December 1933, Bernhard Husfeld took over provisional management until Wilhelm Rudorf was appointed director of the institute in spring 1936.

In March / April 1945 the institute was relocated to Voldgsen, Hameln district. In 1956 the company moved to Cologne on the grounds of Gut Vogelsang. After Rudorf retired in 1961, the institute underwent a major reorientation under Joseph Straub . The focus of the scientific work has been shifted from the primarily application-oriented sector to basic research. Scientists at the institute developed methods of cell and tissue culture of higher plants. After Joseph Straub and Wilhelm Menke retired, Jozef Schell , Heinz Saedler, Klaus Hahlbrock and Francesco Salamini were appointed as new directors from 1978 to 1985 . With its renewal, the research focus shifted again, now to basic molecular genetic research and its application in plant breeding . This focus of work was further expanded through the appointments of Paul Schulze-Lefert and George Coupland, who are currently directors at the MPIPZ. In November 2009, approval was given to rename the institute the “Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research”. It thus followed on from the name "Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research", which is known abroad, and its focus on plants.

In 1998 the institute was hit by a counterfeit scandal.

Departments

Four scientific departments at the MPIPZ deal with questions about the evolution of plants, their genetic blueprint, their development and their interactions with the environment.

Field cress ( Arabidopsis thaliana ) test plants in the greenhouse

Under the direction of Paul Schulze-Lefert, the Department of Molecular Phytopathology examines how plants interact with harmful microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria and what defense reactions they have developed against diseases. The researchers are particularly dedicated to the molecular mechanisms of signal processing in the model organisms thale cress ( Arabidopsis thaliana ) and in selected crops.

The Department of Comparative Developmental Genetics, headed by Miltos Tsiantis, aims to shed light on how genotypes are translated into organismic forms through the process of morphogenesis and how the balance between maintenance and divergence in morphogenetic regulatory networks produces different organismic forms during evolution.

The plant developmental biology department , headed by George Coupland, investigates how signals from the environment are transmitted and influence the timing of flowering. Of particular interest are those mechanisms that enable plants to perceive seasonal changes in the length of the day and, in response, to initiate flower formation. Field cress as well as barley ( Hordeum vulgare ) and perennial plant species serve as model organisms.

The Department of Chromosome Biology , headed by Raphael Mercier, aims to decipher the molecular mechanisms of recombination and how recombination affects adaptation. The primary goal of this department is to understand meiosis and to propose innovations for plant breeding.

public relation

The MPIPZ offers guided tours through the institute for visitor groups and school classes. The program is tailored to the educational background and interests of the visitor group.

In the summer, visitors to the institute's teaching gardens will find breeding research hands-on: around 100 species of useful plants are grown there. In specimens, for example, differences between wild forms, ancient cultivated species and modern cultivated forms can be observed. You can also see types of fruit such as the josta berry , a cross between currants and gooseberries grown at the institute. A summary of information on the most famous cultivated plants can also be found on the homepage.

Science Barn (WiS)

Science Barn

The WissenschaftsScheune (WiS) is an MPIPZ facility where visitors can experience science up close. Research ranges from DNA molecules to the cultivation of new cultivars. Topics of basic research and visitors can discover playfully in adventure worlds in the barn of the manor as well as in the show garden. The science barn is only accessible to groups of visitors. Individuals must form visitor groups or join a visitor group. You can choose from age-appropriate offers through to children's birthdays and holiday offers by arrangement. The science barn is located in the Belvedere landscape park .

International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS)

The International Max Planck Research School on the Molecular Basis of Plant Development and Environmental Interactions has been located at the institute since January 2001 . The interdisciplinary English-language doctoral program is aimed at students with the purpose of promoting new, groundbreaking research. Within this "Research School" the Max Planck Institute for Breeding Research cooperates with the University of Cologne (Institute for Botany, Institute for Biochemistry), the Institute for Bioorganic Chemistry (Poznań, Poland), the Institute for Plant Sciences (Gif-sur- Yvette, France) and the Biological Research Center (Szeged, Hungary). The IMPRS spokesman is George Coupland, who is also the director of the institute. At the end of 2012, the IMPRS was extended by six years for the period from 2014 to 2019.

literature

  • MPI for Breeding Research (Ed.): 1928-2003: 75 years of the Institute for Breeding Research. Cologne 2003
  • Susanne Heim , Hildegard Kaulen: Müncheberg - Cologne: The Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research . In: Places of thought: Max Planck Society and Kaiser Wilhelm Society, Breaks and Continuities, Sandstein-Verlag, Dresden 2011, ISBN 978-3-942422-01-7 ( online ; PDF; 2.4 MB)
  • Susanne Heim: calories, rubber, careers. Plant breeding and agricultural research at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institutes 1933–1945 . Wallstein, Göttingen 2003, ISBN 3-89244-696-2 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Organization of the MPIPZ , accessed on August 24, 2015
  2. ↑ Jörg Blech: Tricked . In: Die Zeit , No. 28/1998, p. 31
  3. ↑ Cultivated plants exhibition at the MPIPZ
  4. ↑ IMPRS . mpipz.mpg.de.
  5. ^ Continuation of the MPIPZ International Max Planck Research School for another six years . mpipz.mpg.de.

Coordinates: 50 ° 57 ′ 30 ″  N , 6 ° 51 ′ 34 ″  E