Wednesday, 18 June 2025
A pioneering breakthrough by scientists at Monash University is poised to redefine the future of agriculture, offering a pathway to developing climate-resilient “designer crops” that can adapt to regional weather conditions with unprecedented precision.
In a study published in the prestigious journal Science, an international research team led by Professor Sureshkumar Balasubramanian from the Monash School of Biological Sciences has debunked long-held assumptions about how plants perceive and respond to temperature changes.
Contrary to the traditional belief that plants rely on a single “thermometer-like” mechanism similar to that of animals, the team found that temperature sensing in plants occurs through a complex, decentralised network of proteins and biological pathways.
“This is a fundamental shift in how we understand plant biology,” said Professor Balasubramanian. “By decoding the distributed genetic systems that plants use to detect temperature, we open up the possibility of breeding crops that are precisely tuned to thrive under specific climatic conditions.”
Such precision breeding could revolutionise how farmers approach crop selection and management, particularly as climate extremes such as heatwaves, droughts, and unseasonal flooding become increasingly common.
“This discovery is a significant leap forward in the fight against food insecurity,” he added. “While addressing climate change remains essential, this research equips us with a powerful tool to engineer crop resilience right at the genetic level.”
Co-author Dr Sridevi Sureshkumar emphasized that this new model marks a step beyond traditional genetically modified (GM) crops. “We can now pinpoint the exact temperature-responsive elements in a plant and manipulate them with surgical precision,” she said. “It’s like personalised medicine for crops.”
The research was carried out in collaboration with Monash alumnus Dr Avilash Singh Yadav, now at Cornell University in the United States, and Professor Alok Sinha from the National Institute of Plant Genome Research in India.
The implications for agriculture, particularly in regions vulnerable to climate variability such as Australia and South Asia, are enormous. Tailored crops that can withstand region-specific weather patterns could help stabilise yields and reduce the risks associated with climate-induced agricultural disruption.
Professor Balasubramanian is scheduled to present the team’s findings at the International Conference on Arabidopsis Research 2025 in Ghent, Belgium on June 20.
As global food systems face mounting pressures from climate change, this research represents a beacon of hope—ushering in a new era where crops are not just bred for yield, but for survival in a changing world.
