In the module "Integrative Plant Sciences", which consists of the online course and seminar "Plant Response to Stress" (PRESS) and the colloquium "Challenges in Plant Sciences" , the focus lies on interdisciplinarity, ranging from molecular biology and biochemistry to ecosystem research, and an integrated understanding of plants in their environments.

Photomorphogenesis during seedling development will be described. The role of different photoreceptors and the underlying molecular mechanisms of their activity during light control will be discussed. Experimental approaches such as mutant screens that have been used successfully to understand this light control will be introduced.

This practical course will use three Arabidopsis lines, wild type and the flu and flu/executer1 mutants to analyze experimentally the control of tetrapyrrole synthesis and the lethal consequences of deregulation of this pathway.