Just how much does enhancing photosynthesis improve crop yield?
Enhancing plant photosynthetic efficiency has been identified as the next major avenue for improving field performance of staple crops. Understanding yield consequences of photosynthetic manipulation is needed.
Advancing and utilising crop growth models provide means to assess and guide bioengineering and breeding approaches to maximise benefits of photosynthetic enhancement. Here, I present a novel, advanced cross-scale model that links crop growth and yield dynamics with leaf photosynthesis to enable yield consequence assessment of photosynthetic manipulation under variable environments associated with water availability. Implications of the new modelling capability for crop improvement are discussed.
Dr Alex Wu
Centre for Crop Science, QAAFI, The University of Queensland
Alex obtained his PhD from the University of Queensland in 2015 where he received his training in mathematical modelling of biological systems. In the same year, he joined Graeme Hammer’s group here at QAAFI to work on developing novel, advance crop growth models drawing knowledge from research disciplines associated with photosynthesis and crop (eco)physiology. Alex is also interested in applying the new modelling capabilities to help strategize crop improvement efforts in boosting yields of globally important staple food crops.
About Science Seminars
Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation hosts science seminars across the disciplines of animal, horticulture, crop, food and nutritional sciences.
With a range of speakers from Australia and abroad, the series explores how high-impact science will significantly improve the competitiveness and sustainability of the tropical and sub-tropical food, fibre and agribusiness sectors.
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The Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation is a research institute at The University of Queensland supported by the Queensland Government via the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.
