To help crops battle pests, disease, and environmental stress, farmers often turn to broad chemical sprays simply because plants have few natural defenses. Angela Chen, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at Michigan State University, studies how microbes and plants naturally communicate. She then turns those insights into new ways for crops …
In California’s Death Valley, where summer temperatures regularly soar above 120 degrees Fahrenheit, life seems almost impossible. Yet among the cracked earth and blinding sunlight, one native plant not only survives — it thrives. That plant, Tidestromia oblongifolia, has helped Michigan State University scientists uncover how life can flourish in extreme heat, revealing a potential …
The Spark: A Seed in the Stacks Innovation often begins with a single question. For Mammoth Distilling, that question emerged during a routine research session in the Michigan State University (MSU) library: What happened to Michigan’s legendary rye varieties? While researching whiskey heritage in the MSU library, Ari Sussman, an MSU graduate and a Mammoth Distilling team member, stumbled upon a reference to Rosen …
Researchers have revealed a previously unknown way plants shape their growth in response to light — a breakthrough that could better equip crops to handle environmental stress. In a first-of-its-kind finding, the team discovered how a compound that’s involved in plant metabolism can directly “reprogram” an unrelated light-sensing protein. This unexpected interaction, which was reported in the …
Fragrant garden staples part of the sprawling mint family like thyme, basil and lavender are hiding some super-sized secrets with big applications, according to Spartan researchers. While unraveling the genetic makeup of a mint relative called ground oak, MSU biochemists discovered it sported a truly massive genome — nearly as large as our own — …
Earlier this year, Dr. Jessica Fitzgerald and her colleagues at the the New Zealand Institute of Bioeconomy Science (BSI) reached out to Dr. Pratima Devkota at Michigan State University (MSU) after coming across her research on Armillaria root rot. The Kiwifruit Breeding Centre (KBC) has developed a new breeding strategy for diseases that have been causing issues …
All of Michigan State University’s USAID funding programs have been terminated by the federal government, resulting in more than $20 million in funding loss. This includes nine direct programs, as well as five flow-through programs. The loss in funding has ended programs across campus — including the Feed the Future Global Biotech Potato Partnership, a project …
Phil Robertson, Ph. D., a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University (MSU) in the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), one of the highest honors for a scientist in the United States. Robertson is an internationally recognized crop and soil scientist and ecosystem …
The final stage of the project is expected to be complete by November 2026. Just over a year ago, Michigan State University leaders broke ground on transformative renovations taking place at the MSU Plant Science Research Greenhouse Facility located at the corner of Farm Lane and Wilson Road. As work continues to be done at the facility, its progress …
Three Michigan State University faculty members have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences this year. Christoph Benning, Jianguo “Jack” Liu and Philip Robertson are among the 120 members and 30 international members being recognized for their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Abraham Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related …
