Julian Hibberd’s group aims to understand the most efficient form of photosynthesis used by plants (known as the C4 pathway), which evolved around 10 million years ago. The C4 pathway allows faster rates of photosynthesis, and so growth rates and productivity are higher. Although C4 photosynthesis is presently used by the most productive crops mankind has domesticated, most of our crops do not use it.
Understanding the C4 pathway fully would allow characteristics of C4 photosynthesis to be integrated into a wide range of crops, and their productivity increased. This would have major implications for increasing the generation of biomass for bioenergy uses, as well as for food production in the developing world.
