Institute of Plant Sciences

Understanding of how plants function, grow and develop, and complete their life cycles, has been of fundamental scientific interest for centuries. Today, basic research covers many scales that integrate physiology and ecology, from molecules to cells through to whole plants and vegetation. Important applications are to be found in areas such as agriculture, conservation and climate change.

The Institute of Plant Sciences carries out research in Molecular Plant Physiology, Chemical Ecology, Plant Ecology, and Palaeoecology. It contributes to the teaching programs in BSc Biology and to several MSc courses

The IPS has strong links to the Institute of Ecology and Evolution, the Institute of Cell Biology, the Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, and is a member of the Swiss Plant Science Web and the European Plant Science Organisation. The IPS is partner for biodiversity and ecosystems of the Wyss Academy for Nature

News and Events

Research.com

IPS researchers rank among the best researchers in Switzerland on Research.com

Researchers at the Institute of Plant Sciences are among the best in the ranking based on a scholar’s D-index (Discipline H-index), which only considers papers and citation metrics for an examined discipline. The 3rd annual list includes researchers whose work ranks in the top 100 in their respective fields in Switzerland. In 2024, Markus Fischer, Willy Tinner, Daniel Prati, Eric Allan (Ecology and Evolution) as well as Matthias Erb and Urs Feller (Plant Sciences and Agronomy) have been recognised on the list.

Markus Fischer, Willy Tinner, Daniel Prati, Eric Allan, Matthias Erb, Urs Feller

Laborjournal

Most cited plant researchers in the German-speaking world

A publication analysis published in the Laborjournal, which covers the years 2013-2022, shows a highly pleasing result for the Institute of Plant Sciences. Markus Fischer is in the top quarter of the ranking of the most cited minds in the field of plant research.

Markus Fischer

Ecology Letters

Fast–slow traits predict competition network structure and its response to resources and enemies

Quantifying all pairwise interactions in highly diverse ecosystems across contrasting environmental conditions is extremely challenging. However, our results show that this effort is worthwhile to better mechanistically understand how nitrogen addition and pathogen removal, two of the most common drivers of global change, affect the population dynamics of complex communities.

Caroline Daniel, Eric Allan, Hugo Saiz

PNAS

Corn reduces arsenic toxicity in soil

When crops grow in arsenic-contaminated soil, this toxic element accumulates in the food chain. A study by the University of Bern and the University of Basel has now discovered a mechanism used by corn plants to reduce arsenic uptake: the key factor is a special substance released into the soil by the roots.

Veronica Caggìa, Gabriel Deslandes, Pierre Mateo, Christelle Robert, Klaus Schlaeppi, Matthias Erb - PNAS

Prof. Otto Hegg

The outstanding plant scientist Prof. em. Dr. Otto Hegg, who came to the University of Bern via the second educational route, has died at the age of 93. His life's work, characterised by the combination of theoretical approaches with intensive fieldwork, includes significant contributions to nature conservation and community ecology, among them the "Atlas schutzwürdiger Vegetationstypen der Schweiz". He was director of the Institute of Systematics and Geobotany, which was later merged with the Institute of Plant Physiology to form the Institute of Plant Sciences. After his retirement, he was actively involved in the Schynige Platte Alpine Garden and shared his knowledge in numerous courses and guided tours. Otto Hegg inspired numerous biology students and left behind an important legacy through former students who now work in nature conservation offices, ecological offices and research.

Nature Communications

A slow-fast trait continuum at the whole community level in relation to land-use intensification

Organisms exhibit a spectrum of functional strategies based on their growth rates, influenced by factors like resource availability and disturbance. This study analyzes trait data from over 2800 taxa across 14 trophic guilds in German grasslands, revealing a community-level 'slow-fast' axis shaped by both direct and trophically mediated responses to environmental drivers. The research further demonstrates that communities with 'fast' traits are linked to accelerated rates of ecosystem functioning, introducing a novel perspective for ecosystem-level functional classification.

Caterina Penone, Ralph Bolliger, Markus Fischer, Noëlle V. Schenk

Ecology Letters

Nitrogen availability and plant functional composition modify biodiversity-multifunctionality relationships

The study reveals context-dependent diversity effects on multifunctionality, driven by species pool's functional trait composition. Global change-induced shifts amplify diversity loss impacts on ecosystem functioning, emphasizing the importance of managing functional composition. Overall, these findings underline the need to consider multiple diversity dimensions, and interactions between them and abiotic conditions, to optimise multifunctionality in the context of multiple simultaneous global change factors.

Noémie Pichon, Seraina Cappelli, Santiago Soliveres, Tosca Mannall, Thu Zar Nwe, Hugo Vincent, Eric Allan

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Haller Medal

Since 1809, the Haller Medal has been awarded to personalities who have most distinguished themselves through performance, diligence and talent in the Bernese schools and academies and who have completed their studies here. This year, our alumna Dr. Sandra Olivia Brügger is awarded a Haller Medal for her outstanding scientific achievements in the field of palaeoecology and climate science. She receives her gold medal from our Rector on 7 December at the Dies Academicus.

Dual role of MUTE in making grass stomata

Grasses form unique four-cell "breathing pores" or stomatal with two dumbbell-shaped guard cells (GCs) and two subsidiary cells (SCs). A new study in the model grass Brachypodium distachyon, demonstrates that the key protein MUTE not only controls the formation of subsidiary cells but also the orientation of guard cell divisions. These findings reveal MUTE's complex, dual role in forming the "speedy" stomata that grasses rely on for effective gas exchange.

Christoph Schwörer receives SNSF Consolidator Grant

The five-year research project titled "Assessing Past and Future Forest Responses to Climate Change Impacts Using Ancient DNA (ARIaDNA)" addresses the urgent ecological challenges posed by climate change and the biodiversity crisis. The ARIaDNA project seeks to uncover how plants have historically adapted to rapid climate warming, with the aim of deepening our understanding of ecosystem responses to climate change and support the development of innovative management strategies.

The lactonase BxdA mediates metabolic specialisation of maize root bacteria to benzoxazinoids

Root exudates contain specialised metabolites that influence the root microbiome of the plant. This study systematically investigated how maize root bacteria metabolize benzoxazinoids, the main bioactive compounds of maize. The authors found that some maize root bacteria can metabolise the benzoxazinoid MBOA to the red degradation product AMPO, whereas root bacteria from other plant species cannot. These maize bacteria carry a unique gene, bxdA, a lactonase, which allows them to metabolise benzoxazinoids and thus specifically adapt to the roots of maize plants.

Figthting hay fever with AI

Experts at the University of Bern who specialize in the vegetation of the past are contributing their knowledge to an innovation project that is developing devices for pollen monitoring. The development is based on AI and is intended to help people who suffer from allergies.

IPS researchers rank among the best researchers in Switzerland on Research.com

Most cited plant researchers in the German-speaking world

Fast–slow traits predict competition network structure and its response to resources and enemies

Corn reduces arsenic toxicity in soil

Prof. Otto Hegg

A slow-fast trait continuum at the whole community level in relation to land-use intensification

Nitrogen availability and plant functional composition modify biodiversity-multifunctionality relationships

Integrated global assessment of the natural forest carbon potential

Biological diversity boosts ecosystem productivity, but its benefits are maximized in naturally diverse ecosystems. Responsible forest restoration should avoid converting crucial ecosystems like grasslands, peatlands, and wetlands, that are equally essential. Protecting and restoring forests involves addressing complex social, political, and economic challenges. Land-management policies should prioritize the rights and well-being of local communities and indigenous people.

How open were temperate forests in Europe prior to the expansion of Homo sapiens?

Past interglacials, i.e. periods with similarly warm climatic conditions than today, offer valuable lessons about the vegetation structure and composition under anthropogenically non-disturbed conditions. Based on the fossil pollen data from 96 sites across Europe, an international team led by researchers of the Aarhus University, Denmark, modelled the vegetation structure of the last interglacial period (129’000 – 116’000 years ago). They conclude that temperate forests were possibly more open than generally thought and discuss the potential role of extinct large herbivores like elephants, rhinoceros, and aurochs.

The global biogeography of tree leaf form and habit

Our bottom-up model, derived from empirical inventory data, provides insights into forest composition at the individual tree level. This can help benchmark satellite-derived models of forest structure, ecological models, and conservation efforts by identifying key environmental factors affecting tree demographics in the face of climate change. These insights are crucial for global forest ecosystem conservation and sustainability.

Sub-national data is crucial for global mountain biodiversity conservation

To assess progress towards internationally agreed biodiversity goals, reports are typically based on entire countries. Researchers from the Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment at the Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, and their colleagues challenge this country-level approach using the example of how well protected areas cover areas important for mountain biodiversity. They find that country averages deviate quite strongly from values for individual mountain ranges, and conclude that subnational reporting is required to identify areas in need for further protection. They also highlight the need for cross-country conservation initiatives.

In the fast lane thanks to genome recycling

Sedimentary analyses show that in just 16,000 years, more than 500 cichlid species, distributed throughout the entire food web, have evolved in Lake Victoria. This explosion of biodiversity was made possible by repeated cycles of fusion and diversification in evolutionary lineages. As pollen finds show, wetland fishes in Lake Victoria thrived when savannah communities dominated the area and lake levels were low, allowing wetland vegetation to spread. However, wetland fish occurrence decreased when the aquatic vegetation declined with the transformation of Lake Victoria into a deep lake, as researchers from the University of Bern (IEE, IPS, GIUB and IfG) and Eawag have described in the “Nature” journal.

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