CeBiTec Colloquium
Monday, July 8th 2013, 17 c.t.
G2-104, CeBiTec Building
Prof. Dr. Ralf Reski
Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg
FRIAS – Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
BIOSS – Centre for Biological Signalling Studies
Moss Biotechnology
Against scientific mainstream we have developed the moss Physcomitrella patens as a model system for basic biology as well as for biotechnology. Unique among plants, precise genetic engineering is feasible in moss due to efficient homologous recombination. This gene targeting allows the assignment of functions to genomic loci via reverse genetics. The moss genome harbours about 33,000 protein-encoding genes, which are about 10,000 more than humans or the flowering model plant Arabidopsis. In 2010 the US Department of Energy selected the moss genome as one of only a few “plant flagship genomes”, as it is expected to provide tools for solving urgent human needs related to hunger and global climate change. Further, we invented the moss bioreactor for the production of tailored, glyco-engineered recombinant biopharmaceuticals. Even primarily pure basic biology, like the discovery of micro RNA-mediated gene silencing upon environmental stress, may have implications for human health.
Host: Prof. Dr. Olaf Kruse