Photorespiration as a crossroads between photosynthesis, metabolism, and leaf energetics
Presenter:
Dr. Berkley Walker
Associate Professor, Michigan State University
Plant Research Laboratory, Department of Energy
Date:
Friday, November 21, 2025
Please join us on Friday, November 21 from 12:00–1:00 pm (via Zoom) for the final departmental seminar of the semester featuring Dr. Berkley Walker, associate professor in the Department of Energy-Michigan State University Plant Research Laboratory. His talk is titled:
“Photorespiration as a crossroads between photosynthesis, metabolism, and leaf energetics”
Berkley Walker studies the multi-scale impact and mechanisms of photosynthesis with a special emphasis on how photorespiration interacts with central metabolism and plant nutrition. His long‑term vision is to engineer more efficient photosynthesis to meet global challenges in food, fuel, and fiber production. By integrating classical measurements of carbon and energy exchange with modern modeling approaches, Dr. Walker’s work scales from the biochemical level to the leaf and canopy, uncovering bottlenecks in photosynthetic efficiency. His contributions advance both fundamental plant science and applied solutions for sustainable agriculture in a changing climate. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles, submitted a patent for an improvement to photosynthesis and given over 50 oral presentations domestically and internationally. He receives funding from multiple Department of Energy programs and currently holds two National Science Foundation grants. If you have any questions about photosynthesis, plant metabolism, or plant physiology generally, he invites you to send an email to berkley@msu.edu!
We look forward to seeing you on Friday!
Zoom link: https://appstate.zoom.us/j/92304890631?pwd=63phSyO8nbqs8Dvf3KsgC7jy6HoF2O.1