ISRR12

ISRR12

ISRR 12^th International Symposium Roots [& Roads] to a sustainable future held in Leipzig 2-7 June 2024

Doris Vetterlein and team bought together over 350 people in Leipzig for the12th ISRR International Symposium and it was a week to remember. For me it was memorable not only because I was elected the new President of the Society or because my bags were lost in transit and spent the first part of the week with only what I had carried on to the plane, but mainly due to the engaging and dynamic programme that we were presented with.

This started on the first night with the Lifetime Award given to Peter Gregory from the University of Reading UK. Peter has spent the last 50 years studying, understanding and promoting the importance of roots for many global issues. He gave an inspiring talk that was a mix of what we know and where we need to go and I think set the tone of the meeting, which was forward looking, dynamic and challenging. We were also treated to a “Serenade for Peter Gregory” written and performed by Wendy Silk (a previous lifetime award winner) called “We Dig Roots”, this can be found on the front page of the ISRR12 webpage Welcome (12-isrr-2024.de).

After the opportunity to get to know each other and catch up with old and new friends at the drinks reception the main body of the conference started and we were treated daily to a morning of excellent plenary lectures, followed by sessions with keynote talks, offered talks and an afternoon poster session on a different theme. The quality of all presentations was excellent, which is testament to the quality of root research at the moment and the meticulous attention paid by the organising committee when putting together the programme. The plenaries and keynotes offered us a broad range of subjects from fundamental understanding of root cellular and anatomical responses to stress such as presented by Malcolm Bennett and Fang-Jie Zhao through to application of this understanding in breeding programmes and through agronomic interventions by Amelia Henry and Klaus Schlappi. Importantly, we also got insights into value of putting root studies into the wider context from Tim Brobribb and our host Doris Vetterlein.

One of the concepts that got a lot of traction was that of understanding the root economic space and how we can capitalise on understanding the range of plant response to stress and resources by either “do-it yourself" or "outsourcing” to mycorrhizae and the rhizosphere microbiome. This is a compelling framework to base experimental, selection and breeding strategies on. However, I felt there is an element missing from this being the independent role of exudates in impacting the physical and chemical properties of the rhizosphere and this could be seen more as a communal cooperative space, where the plants and microbes are acting as a holobiont rather than in isolation. So, while it’s important we think about simple frameworks to drive our science forward, we shouldn’t lose sight of the inherent complexity and subtlety of the amazing zone we study.  

Notwithstanding the exceptional quality of the plenaries and keynotes, the real highlight for me was the quality of the science and presentation given by the early career scientists, which bodes well for the future of the field. I was not able to attend all the parallel sessions, but for me some of the stand out early career talks I saw came from Will King (Deciphering microbial relationships with functionally discrete fine roots), Jagdeep Singh Sidhu (Ploidy alters root anatomy and shapes the evolution of crop polyploid, Anya Heathcote (Increasing yield stability in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) through genetic improvement of root systems), Imelda Uwase (Fuelling the underground: A matter of perspectives) and Hannah Schneider (The benefit of multiseriate cortical sclerenchyma for drought stress tolerance depends on the environment and expression of other root traits). Its safe to say that the new ISRR Presidential team will be looking to mobilise some of the early career talent to become Ambassadors for the Society and Root Research in general.

There was a short break in the proceedings mid-week to go on the Field Trip to Bad Lauchstädt [Hannah to add info if you attended this]. This was followed by the Conference Dinner at Moritzbastei, which was a rabbit warren of caves and rooms where we were treated to some local food and drinks and where there was an opportunity to dance the night away with colleagues – much fun was had.

The conference concluded with a panel session organised by some of the Early Career Scientists (Maxime Phalempin, Hannah Schneider, Eusun Han, Lingyun Chen). This took the form of the team running through the results from a preconference questionnaire asking the community about their approach and the benefits and limitations of working with roots and these findings being discussed with an on-stage panel and the wider audience. This was a very engaging and interactive way to end the week. Finally, the poster prizes were awarded and the winners are listed here.

Congratulations to the organisers, plenaries and keynotes, prize winners and all the participants for making this such an engaging, dynamic and fulfilling meeting to attend. It is now our job to capture this enthusiasm and use it to come together and raise the profile of roots in between the conferences, the next of which will be hosted by Lixing Yuan from China Agriculture University in Beijing, PR China. Look forward to seeing you all there and before for more ISRR activities.