Current Challenges in Plant Biology: Plant Development
Time: 9th-10th December 2025
Organisers: Ari Pekka Mähönen & Juan Alonso Serra
Locations: Viikki campus, seminar room 2012 (Tuesday) & 1015 (Wednesday), Biocentre 2, Viikinkaari 5
Invited speakers: Pilar Cubas, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council, Spain; Sandy Hetherington, Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, University of Edinburgh, UK & Peter Marhavý, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia & Umeå Plant Science Centre, Sweden
Local speakers: Juan Alonso Serra, Paula Elomaa, Hiroyuki Iida, Jennifer López Ortiz, Ari Pekka Mähönen, Pawel Roszak, Anne Vaten, Teng Zhang
Program
Tuesday 9.12., 10:15-16:00
10:15 Opening and welcome: Juan Alonso Serra & Ari Pekka Mähönen
10:25-11:25 Sandy Hetherington, Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, University of Edinburgh, UK
400 million years of phloem evolution
11:25-11:40 Coffee break
11:40-12:20 Ari Pekka Mähönen, University of Helsinki, Finland
Molecular basis of stem cell fate decision in vascular cambium
12:20-13:20 Lunch break
13:20-14:00 Hiroyuki Iida/Jennifer López Ortiz, University of Helsinki, Finland
Barrier Integrity: Challenges and Maintenance Mechanisms
14:00-14:40 Pawel Roszak, University of Helsinki, Finland
Genetic control of phloem development
14:40-15:00 Coffee break
15:00-16:00 Peter Marhavý, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia & Umeå Plant Science Centre, Sweden
Mechanochemical Control of Plant Wounding and Defense
Wednesday 10.12., 09:15-16:00
09:15-10:15 Pilar Cubas, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council, Spain
Bud dormancy: a plant strategy for resilience and survival
10:15-10:30 Coffee break
10:30-11:10 Anne Vaten, University of Helsinki, Finland
Regulation of stomata production in seed plants
11:10-11:50 Juan Alonso Serra, University of Helsinki, Finland
Plant development under hydraulic fluctuations
11:50-13:00 Lunch break
13:00-13:40 Teng Zheng, University of Helsinki, Finland
Diversification of floral organ arrangements in angiosperms
13:40-14:20 Paula Elomaa, University of Helsinki, Finland
Evolution of Asteraceae capitula - what have we learned from gene functional studies
14:20-14:30 Closing discussion