On 25 May 2015, the Australian Academy of Science announced the election of 21 new Fellows for their outstanding contributions to science and scientific research.
Professor Christine Beveridge FAA
School of Biological Studies, The University of Queensland
Christine Beveridge is a world leader on the hormonal control of plant development, discovering a new hormone and demonstrating how shoot architecture, which underpins the yield, productivity and value of crops, trees and shrubs, is controlled.
Christine Beveridge is a world leader on the hormonal control of plant development and shoot architecture which underpins the yield, productivity or ornamental value of crops, trees and shrubs. Shoot architecture is controlled by the formation, release and then growth of lateral buds into branches. Christine’s work shows that bud release is prevented when sugars are limited, and occurs only when the plant has an excess of sugars. The subsequent growth depends on the right balance of plant hormones. One of these hormones, strigolactone, was discovered through her research on the genetics and physiology of branching mutants.
BIO—Professor Christine Beveridge researches the hormonal control of plant development, particularly shoot architecture. She and her colleagues at the University of Queensland’s School of Biological Sciences have made two major discoveries that have transformed the field. The first is the discovery of strigolactones – a new plant hormone. She has shown that this hormone affects shoot architecture and other important developmental traits such as lateral rooting, adventitious rooting and secondary growth (wood production). The second major discovery is causing a paradigm shift in thinking of shoot architecture, namely that the initial growth of axillary buds is prevented where sugars are limited; branch development only commences under conditions of sufficient sugar availability. These discoveries will be used in the tailoring of shoot branching for improving yield, productivity and ornamental value of crops, trees and shrubs.
Congratulations Christine.