Developing novel transition metal complexes to enhance crop yields

This studentship will explore novel synthetic chemistry and chemical biological routes to tackle the global challenge of food security, by developing molecular tools, with the potential to transform crop security across the globe. It will enable plants to exceed performance levels that are limited by in-built pathway inefficiencies, currently only being addressed via expensive & often perceived as controversial genetic engineering approaches. This novel form of crop enhancement will enable plants to function at levels beyond that set by their natural performance and will target the inefficient process of photosynthesis and in particular the wasteful photorespiration reactions, where O2 competes with CO2, lowering photosynthetic efficiency by ~50%. It will mitigate this by increasing local CO2 concentrations, minimising photorespiration & thereby increase photosynthetic efficiencies and crop yields. This studentship will design, synthesise (transition metal complexes of multidentate ligands), test & optimise (in an iterative manner) a suite of these novel, molecular CO2 delivery vehicles, to investigate their mode of action. This will support the rational optimisation of efficacy, solubility and bioavailability and demonstrate their potential as a viable, scalable & cost-effective tool able to supercharge photosynthesis, resulting in increased crop yield.

Supervisors

• Dr Laura Barter (Department of Chemistry, Imperial)
• Dr Rudiger Woscholski (Department of Chemistry, Imperial)
• Professor Nicholas Long (Department of Chemistry, Imperial)

Applications will be reviewed on an on-going basis and the studentship awarded when a suitable candidate is found.