Green and Robust: our first mini booth at the public day of the Heidelberg Botanical Garden. www.botgart.cos.uni-heidelberg.de/de

✨ Kicking off #SWS2025 at @cosheidelberg.bsky.social with an inspiring opening talk by my PhD supervisor, Barbara Ann Halkier! Excited for the days ahead 🚀🌱

At the Heidelberg Botanic Garden today for the annual garden festival 🌿 I’m sharing insights from my project with curious visitors at my info booth. Great atmosphere, many inspiring conversations!

🌱 Officially kicking off my Klaus Tschira Boost Fund project at @cosheidelberg.bsky.social today!
Excited to explore transgene-free CRISPR domestication using Tropaeolum tuberosum as a testbed for next-generation crop development.
#PlantScience #CRISPR

Klimawandel: Bislang unerforschte Nutzpflanzen für globale Ernährungssicherheit erschließen – Pascal Hunziker erhält Klaus Tschira Boost Fund für Forschungsprojekt in der Pflanzenbiologie
www.uni-heidelberg.de/de/newsroom/...

Follow me for updates as I explore crop improvement strategies to advance our understanding of Tropaeolum tuberosum! 🌎

🔬 Using multi-omics & CRISPR, I aim to explore the genetic basis of key traits that shape crop adaptation & use. This could provide insights into how underutilized crops can be optimized for broader cultivation.

🍠 If mashua has so much potential, why isn't it widely grown? Certain biological traits limit its cultivation range and consumer acceptance. Studying these traits at the molecular level is key to unlocking its potential.

🌱 Tropaeolum tuberosum (mashua) is a resilient Andean tuber with high yield, pest resistance & nutritional value—yet it's still underutilized. Could this be a climate-resilient crop of the future? 🏔️🍽️

🚀 Exciting news! Thanks to the Klaus Tschira Boost Fund (@gso-forresearchers.bsky.social & @klaus-tschira-stiftung.de), I’m launching a CRISPR-driven crop development project on Tropaeolum tuberosum—an underutilized Andean tuber with big potential! 🌱🔬

#PlantScience #CRISPR #OrphanCrops

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