Keiser Lab

Research focus

ERC Starting Grant · 2025

Unraveling Multiscale Embolism Dynamics in Plant Leaves through Biomimetic Models

Embolism, the formation of air bubbles in a plant’s vascular system responsible for water transport (the xylem), disrupts the flow of water and nutrients, leading to hydraulic failure. With the increasing frequency of droughts due to climate change, embolism has become a leading factor in the decline of forests worldwide, contributing to tree mortality and ecosystem collapse. Understanding how embolism forms, spreads, and is repaired in plant tissues is critical for predicting plant resilience to water stress, but current models lack the necessary data to make sufficiently accurate predictions. The EMBIOMO project employs a multidisciplinary and multi-tool approach to address this…

From the public funding record at EU CORDIS. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.