Two Department of Plant Sciences academics awarded prestigious European Research Council Advanced Grants
The funding provides leading senior researchers with the opportunity to pursue ambitious, curiosity-driven projects that could lead to major scientific breakthroughs.
‘Many congratulations to Beverley and Ian... It is fantastic that their ambitious, cutting-edge research will be supported by the European Research Council, marking them as outstanding European research leaders.’
Anne Ferguson-Smith, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Cambridge
The European Research Council (ERC) has announced the award of 255 Advanced Grants to outstanding research leaders across Europe, as part of the EU’s Horizon Europe programme. The ERC Advanced Grants target established, leading researchers with a proven track-record of significant achievements. Two University of Cambridge researchers from the Department of Plant Sciences are amongst those to receive this prestigious and competitive funding.
Professor Beverley Glover, Head of the Evolution and Development Group and Director of Cambridge University Botanic Garden, for her project Convergent evolution of floral patterning through alternative optimisation of mechanical parameter space.
Glover said: “This funding will enable us to explore how iridescent colour evolved repeatedly in different flowers. We think it will shed new light on evolution itself, as we think about the development of iridescence structure from a mechanical perspective, focusing on the forces acting as a petal grows and the mechanical properties of the petal tissue.
“It's only possible for me to do this work because of the amazing living collection at Cambridge University Botanic Garden, and I'm thrilled that the ERC is keen to support it."
Professor Ian Henderson, Head of the Genetic and Epigenetic Inheritance in Plants Group, for his project Evolution of the Arabidopsis Pancentromere.
Henderson said: “This project seeks to investigate enigmatic regions of the genome called the centromeres, using the model plant Arabidopsis. These regions play a deeply conserved role in cell division yet paradoxically are fast evolving.
“I am highly honoured and excited to be awarded an ERC Advanced Grant. The advent of long-read sequencing technology makes addressing these questions timely. The ERC’s long-term support will allow us to capitalise on these advances, build new collaborations, and train postdoctoral researchers.”