Focus: Molecular, Cellular and Development Biology

Ace Cap from Above, courtesy of Dina Mandoli

How do plants grow? What determines whether they develop roots, leaves or flowers?  Why are plants so easy to propagate, to clone, and to bio-engineer?

The study of plant molecular and cellular biology is based in understanding of genetics and the molecular modes of action that make up cell behavior.  Many features of plant cells are similar to those of animals and other organisms, so courses in Biology, Genome Sciences, Microbiology, and Biochemistry are all useful.

But plants are also unique: they contain chloroplasts that make sugars using light energy, their cells are glued together with thick and rigid cell walls, and they are generally rooted in the ground so cannot move the way animals do.  These features make the study of plant genetics and molecular biology challenging and full of novelty.

Students who study Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology often pursue careers or graduate studies in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, or plant genetics, breeding crop development.