Recognizing Plant Physiology first authors: Andrew Scafaro

Andrew Scafaro, first author of A conserved sequence from heat-adapted species improves Rubisco activase thermostability in wheat

Current Position: Research Fellow (Postdoc) at The Australian National University

Education: Bachelor of Science (Class I Honours) and PhD from Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia

Non-scientific Interests: Reading, movies, fishing, travel

Brief bio: During my PhD I studied the heat stress tolerance of wild relatives of rice native to the hot northern regions of Australia under the supervision of professor Brian Atwell. I then collaborated with industry to commercialise a photosynthesis protein (Rubisco activase) discovered in a wild relative of rice that has superior thermal characteristics. I joined the laboratory of professor Owen Atkin at The Australian National University in 2015 and broadened my knowledge to include the temperature response of respiration as well as photosynthesis. I relocated to Ghent, Belgium, for two years as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow hosted by BASF (formally Bayer CropScience), focusing on improving the heat tolerance of wheat. I have returned to the Atkin lab and I am continuing my study of how heat impacts photosynthesis and respiration in plants.