Team Awarded €350k HFML-FELIX Grant for Innovative Plant Regeneration Research

The team of Marleen Kamperman and Adrivit Mukherjee has received a €350,000 HFML-FELIX Incentive Fund grant for the project “On-demand Magnetic Stiffening 3D Hydrogel Networks for Protoplast Mechanobiology.” The project is a collaboration with Peter Christianen and Hans Engelkamp (HFML-FELIX) and Paul Kouwer (Radboud University).

The researchers aim to develop special soft materials (hydrogels) whose mechanical properties can be changed in real time using strong magnetic fields. These materials will be used to study how plant cells respond to physical forces during regeneration.

Plant regeneration is an important step in biotechnology and crop improvement, but current methods are often slow and inefficient. While most approaches focus on chemical signals, this project explores how physical cues such as stiffness and mechanical forces can guide plant cell behavior.

Leveraging the unique high-magnetic-field facilities at HFML-FELIX, the team will create a new experimental platform that allows scientists to dynamically control the microenvironment around living plant cells for the first time.

In the long term, this research could contribute to improved plant regeneration methods and support the development of more resilient crops for sustainable agriculture.

This interdisciplinary effort brings together expertise in soft matter, biomaterials, and plant biology, fostering a synergy that could redefine plant tissue culture. The team is grateful to HFML-FELIX for its support and looks forward to advancing both fundamental science and practical applications in agriculture.

For more information, contact: Marleen Kamperman or Adrivit Mukherjee

https://www.hfml-felix.nl/en/news/four-new-projects-receive-funding-out-of-the-hfml-felix-incentive-fund/