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Illustration of the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge Blooming Numbers exhibit for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025. Illustration by Melanie Sadler.

The Pollinator Patch at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025

Illustration of the planned Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge Blooming Numbers exhibit for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025. A Fibonacci spiral will be the central element of our exhibit and guide visitors through a journey along the plant life-cycle starting with THE FLOWER. The Pollinator Patch is located in the end of the...

New research reveals key mechanisms behind cell division

New research reveals key mechanisms behind cell division A breakthrough in the study of cell division has revealed critical insights into how cells organise the mitotic spindle structure that is responsible for segregating chromosomes during cell division. The collaboration between the labs of Thomas Surrey ( Centre de...

Flowers like hibiscus use an invisible blueprint established very early in petal formation that dictates the size of their bullseyes – a crucial pre-pattern that can significantly impact their ability to attract pollinating bees. Image by Edwige Moyroud

Blooming Numbers: Unveiling the wonders of quantitative plant science at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025

The Sainsbury Laboratory at the University of Cambridge is thrilled to announce its participation in the 2025 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, where it will unveil an interactive plant science exhibit, Blooming Numbers , as part of the new GreenSTEM section highlighting research, innovation and technologies. The exhibit will take...

Marchantia polymorpha growing between pavement cracks. Image by Sebastian Schornack

Groundbreaking insights into the genetic toolkit underlying plant adaptation to land

Groundbreaking insights into the genetic toolkit underlying plant adaptation to land Sequencing the genomes of over a hundred liverworts has uncovered ancient plant adaptation mechanisms, with researchers pinpointing genes linked to temperature and rainfall changes. Researchers at the Sainsbury Laboratory, University of...

Seedlings salute the sun by coordinating multiple mechanical and chemical processes

Research into the mechanisms underlying the uncurling of the apical hook in illuminated Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings shows inner side hook cells show differential irreversible extensibility; auxin and pH gate growth but do not explain differential extension; subepidermal longitudinal force accelerates opening and CMT reorientation; and light-triggered depletion in auxin signaling is gated by wall properties.

Phytophthora palmivora hyphae under the epidermis with haustoria projecting from below into living Nicotiana benthamiana epidermis cells. Image by Alex Guyon.

Exchanges at the haustorial interface

BBSRC's Strategic Longer and Larger grants scheme supports project to pave way for broad-spectrum plant disease resistance by identifying key players in pathogen subversion Researchers from the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU) are collaborating on a £5.91 million 5-year UK research project that will...

Graphical abstract illustrating how the cyanobacterial circadian clock couples to pulsatile processes. The clock couples to RpoD4 through Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM).

Cyanobacterial circadian clock uses an AM radio-like mechanism to control cellular processes

Cyanobacteria, an ancient lineage of bacteria that perform photosynthesis, have been found to regulate their genes using the same physics principle used in AM radio transmission. New research published in C urrent Biology has found that cyanobacteria use variations in the amplitude (strength) of a pulse to convey...

Images and graphics of early flower development patterns in different flowers, including the model flower Arabidopsis, which will be studied in the RESYDE project. Image on right of model of 4D virtual flower in early development.

SLCU joins two ERC Synergy Grants

Two research consortia, including SLCU's Professor Henrik Jönsson and Dr Alexander Jones , have been awarded prestigious ERC Synergy Grants to investigate fundamental aspects of plant development from diverse angles, paving the way for advancements in biotechnology and plant engineering. The highly competitive ERC Synergy...

Creating a spatio-temporal map for auxin dynamics

Creating a spatio-temporal map for auxin dynamics ERC Synergy grant to unlock secrets of plant organ growth Alexander Jones has teamed up with three other leading plant developmental scientists to investigate the interplay between growth hormones and mechanical forces in plant organ morphogenesis. The team will study how...

Building a virtual flower

The ERC Synergy funded project RESYDE will tackle the question how multicellular organisms generate their intricate forms. The focus of the RESYDE project is on symmetry breaking during flower development – a process by which two initially identical cells adopt different cell fates – leading to diverse forms and functions. This fundamental phenomenon is crucial in all multicellular organisms and starts with an asymmetric cell division.

Plant science at Cambridge

The University of Cambridge is home to one of the largest concentrations of plant research anywhere in the world. Visit the below organisations to find out about their work in sustainable agriculture, conservation and fundamental research.

Department of Plant Sciences

Crop Science Centre

Cambridge University Botanic Garden

Cambridge University Herbarium

Cambridge Global Food Security

Cambridge Centre for Physical Biology

Conservation Research Institute

Plants @ Cambridge Hub

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