First stages in our endeavour to understand stressful memories in trees
11:00am – 12:00pm, 12 January 2022
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Understanding Memory of UK Treescapes for Better Resilience and Adaptation (MEMBRA) is a UK Treescapes project that looks at the memory of trees using cutting-edge molecular biology techniques to understand how past stresses are maintained and transmitted through generations. MEMBRA also explores how our understanding of tree memory impacts the language that describes treescapes and influences human interactions.
MEMBRA are studying epigenetic changes from stress and whether these changes are passed down through generations in UK tree species. They are also analysing tree rings to visualise a complete lifetime picture of trees’ responses to their past environment. The combination of ecology, tree rings and molecular techniques is allowing them to assess whether past stress has improved the resilience of UK treescapes.
In this talk, Dr Estrella Luna-Diez will give an overview of the early results that they have in terms of stress adaptation phenotypes and in changes in epigenetics that they are unravelling with their DNA methylation analysis.
Speaker
Dr Estrella Luna-Diez is the Principal Investigator for MEMBRA and an Associate Professor of Plant Pathology at the University of Birmingham. Her work is aimed towards plant protection and biosecurity. She studies the sophisticated immune system of plants in order to exploit their resistance capacity to a maximum. She leads on the biology work within MEMBRA and guides the team with her experience in epigenetics.
Who should attend?
This talk is part of the UK Treescapes Seminar series. The series provides timely information to policymakers and stakeholders of the Future of UK Treescapes Programme about the research being undertaken in the programme’s projects.
Our stakeholders include NGOs, Local community groups, Landowners, Community Forests, Tree Officers, Forest Managers, National Parks, Forest industry and General Public.
Please note this event will be hosted online and will be recorded and made available for those who cannot attend.