ISRR NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2024
Welcome to the ISRR Newsletter – by Tim George
Welcome to the new look ISRR Newsletter that will introduce you to the new ISRR team, who hope to increase the activity and engagement in the society over the coming years. We hope this newsletter will become a must-read for society members to find out about what's been going on, what’s coming up and how society members can engage with these activities. You will be able to find out about the activities of the newly developed society working groups and join in with the positive actions these groups will develop over time. This newsletter will also act as a place for the society members to communicate information of importance to the whole society. So get involved, it's your society and together we hope to raise the profile of root research to the wider world.
Introduction to the team
Timothy George – ISRR President
Tim is a rhizosphere scientist at the James Hutton Institute and the Deputy Director of the International Barley Hub. He got his BSc from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1996 and PhD in Soil Science from the University of Reading in 2000 and currently holds Honorary Professorships at the University of Aberdeen and the University of Nottingham. He has specific expertise in understanding how the external environment mitigates plant physiological and genetic responses to a lack of resources in the rhizosphere. Tim has published >140 papers in the field and currently coordinates an EU Horizon Europe to develop root phenotyping and genetic improvement for crops resilient to environmental change. In addition, he is actively involved in promoting plant and soil science as Marschner Editor for Plant and Soil, UK coordinator of Fascination of Plants Day, Board member of EPSO and Chair of the EPSO Plant Science Seminar series and the Dundee Root Medal. He is the incoming President of Society and will be coordinating the activities of the team to deliver a dynamic and vibrant society.
Hannah Schneider – Executive Secretary
Hannah is a root biologist at the Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) in Germany. She received her BSc in 2011 from the University of Minnesota and her PhD in 2017 from Pennsylvania State University. She currently holds a joint position leading the ‘Genetics and Physiology of Root Development’ research group at the IPK and is a professor at the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. Her research focuses on identifying and understanding the utility of root anatomical and architectural traits in crops for improved soil water and nutrient acquisition. Using both genetic and physiological approaches her work aims to understand plant adaptations to drought and low fertility environments. Hannah is also involved in the Root Phenotyping Working Group of the International Plant Phenotyping Network (IPPN) and serves on the editorial board of several plant science journals. In her ISRR role Hannah will be working with the team to maintain finances and support the new ISRR working groups.
Charlotte White – Engagement Officer
Charlotte is a crop physiologist at ADAS, based in Nottinghamshire in the UK. Charlotte’s particular research interests include plant root systems, crop water use, legumes, cover crops and the impact of these on soils and crop performance. Charlotte joined ADAS in 2011 after achieving her PhD from the University of Nottingham in the water use efficiency of tomatoes. Currently, Charlotte is technical co-lead of the pea and bean Yield Enhancement Networks (YENs), which aim to understand and benchmark crop performance on farm, involved in the AHDB Strategic Farm North project and a work package leader in the Horizon Europe project, Rot2Res: Root phenotyping and genetic improvement for rotational crops resilient to environmental change. Charlotte has achieved the BASIS Soil and Water Management certificate, is a technical member of the British Society of Soil Science and is convener of the Association of Applied Biologists ‘Soil and Root Biology Group’. In her ISRR role Charlotte will be working with the team to promote the society and further its aims. Specifically, curating the membership list and the newsletter.
Benjamin Delory – Social media
Benjamin is a functional, chemical, and community ecologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. He currently holds an assistant professor position in the environmental sciences group of the Copernicus institute of sustainable development. He received his MSc in bioengineering in 2011 and his PhD in 2015 from the University of Liege (Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech) in Belgium. He worked as a postdoc and principal investigator at the institute of ecology of the Leuphana University Lueneburg between 2015 and 2023. His research focuses on the mechanisms driving plant-soil interactions in natural ecosystems and how they are affected by human-induced environmental changes such as nutrient enrichment. In his research, he uses a variety of methods, from conceptual synthesis to manipulative experiments in the field and under controlled environmental conditions, as well as plant phenotyping and metabolomics approaches. Benjamin is also involved in the Root Phenotyping Working Group of the International Plant Phenotyping Network (IPPN) and serves on the editorial board of Plant and Soil. In ISRR, Benjamin will be working with the team to develop and maintain the online presence of ISRR on social media.
ISRR 12th International Symposium Roots [& Roads] to a sustainable future
Leipzig 2-7th June 2024
Tim George
Doris Vetterlein and team brought 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 Welcome page of the ISRR12 website.
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 the 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). It's 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. 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 pre-conference 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.
Katrin Pietig, Georg-August-University Goettingen, Germany
Agyei Kwabena, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany
Taiga Masumoto, Shinshu University, Japan
Guoting Shen, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Germany
Monika Kubalová, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Czech Republic
Olivia Brunton, CSIRO, Australia
Daniele Fantozzi, University of Molise, Italy
Sarah Nettemann, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
Dominik Behrend, University of Bonn, Germany
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.
10th Root Dundee Medal Lecture
Tim George
On 6th November 2024 Dr Amelia Henry of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines was the 10th Dundee Root Medal recipient. Over the last 20 years Amelia has worked on applying and developing root phenotyping approaches to apply to large genetic populations of rice field conditions across Asia. Her medal lecture was entitled “Integrated root phenotypes under seedling stage drought in direct-seeded rice” and focused on data from extensive field trials of rice and the impact of root phenotypes in selection of rice breeding material. The lecture was supported by a range of talks given by early career scientists associated with IRRI and a range of Scottish Institutions. The whole event can be seen by following this link
The International Rice Research Institute has written a short article on the lecture “How digging into root science can help crops grow in dry conditions” which highlights the long legacy of root research at IRRI. The article can be found here.
An introduction to the Working Groups
Hannah Schneider
We are establishing six new ISRR working groups to boost activity and engagement in the root biology community. Leading these groups are early career researchers, each supported by a senior researcher.
We are currently developing working groups around the following topics:
Rhizosphere and Signaling, Lead: Will King, supported by Uli Mathesius
Phenotyping Method Development, Lead: Jon Atkinson, supported by Amelia Henry
Genetics and Omics, Lead: Amir Ankami, supported by Malcolm Bennett
Root Modelling, Lead: Ivan Lopez Valdivia, supported by Lixing Yuan
Roots and Ecosystem Function, Lead: Molly Hanlon, supported by Jianbo Shen
Root Anatomy and Architecture, Lead: Gwen Kirchner, supported by Doris Vetterlein
The working groups plan to meet several times a year to develop research outputs, organize activities, and collaborate across areas of root research. This will include organizing an annual (online) seminar, developing content contributions to the ISRR newsletter and social media, developing outreach activities, and interacting with stakeholders and other working groups.
In Memoriam
Theodore C. Hsiao Professor of Land, Air and Water Resources, Emeritus
University of California, Davis
1931 - 2023
Theodore (Ted) C. Hsiao, passed away on October 16, 2023 at the age of 91.
Hsiao’s (Ted’s) research focused on plant-water-soil interactions and crop productivity in relation to water and climate. He was a towering figure in plant water relations - his seminal review of “Plant Responses to Water Stress” in the Annual Review of Plant Physiology in 1973 became one of the journal’s most highly cited articles. His research included pioneering studies of how root and leaf expansive growth are modified in response to water deficits, particularly the regulation of plant cell turgor pressure and cell wall properties. In the 1980s I had the great fortune to spend time in Ted’s lab as a postdoc and to experience first-hand his amazing command of water stress physiology and his creative and detailed approach to research. I still return to his authoritative reviews and research papers as sources of information and vision.
Details of Ted’s stellar career are available at the University of California Academic Senate In Memoriam web site, and can be accessed at the following link (with permission):
On behalf of Ted’s colleagues around the world,
Bob Sharp, University of Missouri
ISRR On social media
ISRR has been present on Twitter (now known as X) since 2017 (@RootScientists). Recently, we decided to expand the online presence of ISRR by joining two additional social media platforms: LinkedIn and Bluesky. Do not hesitate to follow ISRR on Bluesky (@rootscientists.bsky.social)! On LinkedIn, you are also more than welcome to become a member of our public group (International Society of Root Research). Looking forward to connecting with root scientists from all over the world!
Connect with us on social media
New ISRR Website
We are in the process of redesigning the ISRR Website. This involves moving to a new and less expensive host, a redesign of the ‘look and feel’ and revision of the content. We will keep the same domain and aim to launch the new website by the end of 2024 - Watch this space.
New Code of Conduct
We have implemented a new code of conduct for the society and any ISRR associated events. The code of conduct outlines the expectations for all ISRR members and ISRR event attendees, so that we can support the growth of a safe and inclusive community. The code of conduct has been approved by the ExCOM and can be found here on the newly updated website.
Membership Survey
We are updating our membership records and have put together a short survey, to check contact details and that we have your permission to contact you about the society’s events and activities. A link to the survey can be found here, it shouldn’t take long to complete.
Upcoming Events
The 6th IPG (Interdisciplinary Plant Group) Root Biology Symposium – May 20-23, 2025, University of Missouri. ( https://ipg.missouri.edu/symposium/ ), The symposium , will bring together leading experts in root biology from around the world, and provide a forum for interactions among prominent scholars, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate and undergraduate students. It will cover a broad range of topics, including root development and growth, root function in water and nutrient uptake, responses to abiotic and biotic stress, and root-microbe interactions. Research presented will span spatial and temporal scales and will encompass studies based on model, crop, and native species. The symposium will enable close interactions among all participants to foster the generation of new ideas and collaborations that will ultimately contribute to more sustainable crop production and enhance ecosystem services.
Rhizosphere 6 - Rooting for earth. June 2025 in Edinburgh. The conference will showcase the latest advances in our understanding of the below ground world of plant roots and their interactions with the soil physical, chemical and biological environment under a changing climate. Registration and abstract submission is open. Submit abstracts by 28th February 2025 and early bird registration ends 31st March 2025. https://www.rhizo6.org/home
Future content
We are developing the look and regular content of the reinvigorated ISRR newsletter and welcome your feedback and suggestions on content. Potential regular sections include:
News from members
An update from one of the working groups
Upcoming events
Member highlights
Research highlights
Opportunities
Links to seminars/shared content
If you have any root research related news and content to share, please send it to Charlotte at ISRRrootresearch@gmail.com with the email subject “ISRR News and content”.
Our Aim
To promote cooperation and communication between root researchers around the world.
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Contact Us
ISRRrootresearch@gmail.com
Timothy George – ISRR President
Hannah Schneider – Executive Secretary
Charlotte White – Engagement Officer
Benjamin Delory – Social media
