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Hybrid aspen (right) uses the same genes to stop growth for winter as Arabidopsis (left) uses to trigger flowering - but in opposite ways. Photos: Marta Derba-Maceluch (left) and Bo Zhang (right)
Deciduous trees and annual plants rely on the same ancestral genes, but evolution has assigned them different tasks. Now researchers from Sweden and China show that aspen trees use flowering-related genes to stop growth as winter approaches - yet in the opposite way compared to annual plants.
Read more: Trees repurpose flowering gene toolkit to control winter growth stop
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At the prize ceremony in Stockholm (from left to right): Stefan Jansson, Carl Jan Granqvist (award presenter and board member, Måltidsakademien), Emil Åreng (winner of Best book, all categories) and Roland von Bothmer (editor and main author). Photo: Maria Nilsson
The book “Framtidens Matförsörjning” has been recognised as Swedish food literature (Svensk Måltidslitteratur) of 2025 in the category Essays. It explores how to secure sufficient and sustainable food for a growing global population and highlights the importance of scientific integrity. Co-author Stefan Jansson from Umeå University contributed expertise on the opportunities offered by modern genetics.
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Sonali Ranade received this year's KBC Employee of the Year Award (photo: Madhusree Mitra).
At the beginning of this year, Sonali Ranade launched a laughter club at UPSC. The aim was to bring colleagues together to practise laughter yoga, helping to improve wellbeing and reduce stress. Now, her initiative has been recognised with the KBC Employee of the Year Award 2025.
Read more: Sonali Ranade awarded KBC Employee of the Year 2025
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Stephan Wenkel, Professor at Department of Plant Physiology and group leader at UPSC, hopes that the Nobel Symposium in September next year will create new perspectives on how to approach basic and applied research in microproteins. Photo: Mattias Pettersson, Umeå University.
In September 2026, Stephan Wenkel will lead one of two Nobel Symposia hosted at Umeå University. The symposium will focus on microproteins and their potential applications in biotechnology – a topic with relevance beyond plant science.
Read more: Microproteins in focus at Nobel Symposium in Umeå 2026
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Léa Bogdziewiez has developed new tools that make it possible to study how plant cells attach to each other, a feature that enables trees to grow several meters tall (photo: Roxane Bogdziewiez).
How can a tree grow several meters tall? The answer lies in the ability of plant cells to attach to each other. This process has long been difficult to study, but PhD student Léa Bogdziewiez has developed methods that make it possible to study the process on a whole new level.
Read more: New tools to study how plant cells stick together
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Rishikesh Bhalerao (left), Åsa Strand (middle) and Nathaniel Street (right) each lead a project exploring key aspects of plant development, environmental adaptation and resilience (photo credit (from left to right): Andreas Palmén, Vaughan Hurry, Fredrik Larsson).
Last week, the Swedish Research Council announced the recipients of funding under its call for research projects in natural and engineering sciences. Among those selected are three projects led by UPSC researchers Rishikesh Bhalerao, Åsa Strand and Nathaniel Street. Their research explores how trees regulate the timing of bud break in spring, how photosynthesis is established, and the evolutionary innovations that have shaped conifers.
Read more: Three UPSC research projects receive funding from the Swedish Research Council
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Photo: Anne Honsel
The new quarterly newsletter UPSC Insights will share highlights from ongoing research, feature interviews with alumni and offer updates on events and opportunities. It aims to strengthen connections within the UPSC community and link the centre’s research more closely with alumni, collaborators and industry partners.
Read more: UPSC launches “UPSC Insights” – sharing science and stories beyond the centre
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PhD student Laura Tünnermann studied how plants take up amino acids (photo: Anne Honsel).
Plants can absorb amino acids as an alternative nitrogen source to nitrate and ammonium but little is known about how this process is regulated. PhD student Laura Tünnermann has now identified new molecular regulators, offering insights that may help reduce fertilizer-related pollution.
Read more: New insights into how plants regulate the uptake of organic nitrogen
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PhD student Tuuli Aro has studied how the roots of boreal trees, such as birch, respond to cold (photo: Anne Honsel).
Climate change likely leads to thinner snow cover during winter in northern Europe, leaving tree roots more exposed to cold. PhD student Tuuli Aro found that boreal tree species respond differently to this kind of stress and highlights how genomic tools can help breed for more frost-tolerant trees.
Read more: Thinner snow, colder roots – boreal trees show unique cold responses
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Tamara Hernández-Verdeja is now working on establishing her research group at the Centro de Biotecnología y Genómica de Plantas UPM-INIA in Madrid (photo: Oxel Urra).
Tamara Hernández-Verdeja shifted her research focus to chloroplasts when joining Åsa Strand’s group at UPSC and chloroplasts are still keeping her curiosity alive. End of last year, she received a Ramón y Cajal fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, enabling her to move back to Spain and establish her own research line. In this interview, we have asked her about her career, her motivation to stay in academia and her favourite memories from her time at UPSC.