Prof. Dr. Ute Armbruster

Our research aims to uncover the regulatory mechanisms governing plant photosynthesis in natural light settings. Specifically, we aim to understand how the light and carbon reactions of photosynthesis coordinate their functions. To achieve this goal, we employ interdisciplinary methodologies, spanning from analyzing regulatory responses of entire organisms to scrutinizing individual molecules. Our approach integrates whole plant spectroscopy with genetically encoded biosensors and molecular techniques.

1. Uflewski M, Rindfleisch T, Korkmaz K, Tietz E, Mielke S, Correa Galvis V, Dünschede B, Luzarowski M, Skirycz A, Schwarzländer M, Strand DD, Hertle AP, Schünemann D, Walther D, Thalhammer A, Wolff M, Armbruster U (2024) The thylakoid proton antiporter KEA3 regulates photosynthesis in response to the chloroplast energy status. Nat Commun 15(1):2792. doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-47151-5.
2. von Bismarck T, Wendering P, Perez de Souza L, Russ J, Strandberg L, Heyneke E, Walker BJ, Schöttler MA, Fernie AR, Nikoloski Z, Armbruster U (2023) Growth in fluctuating light buffers plants against photorespiratory perturbations. Nat Commun 14(1):7052. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-42648-x.
3. von Bismarck T, Korkmaz K, Russ J, Skurk K, Kaiser E, Correa Galvis V, Cruz JA, Strand DD, Köhl K, Eirich J, Finkemeier I, Jahns P, Kramer DM, Armbruster U (2023) Light acclimation interacts with thylakoid ion transport to govern the dynamics of photosynthesis in Arabidopsis. New Phytol 237(1):160-176. doi: 10.1111/nph.18534.
4. Keller JM, Frieboes MJ, Jödecke L, Kappel S, Wulff N, Rindfleisch T, Sandoval-Ibanez O, Gerlach I, Thiele W, Bock R, Eirich J, Finkemeier I, Schünemann D, Zoschke R, Schöttler MA, Armbruster U (2023) Eukaryote-specific assembly factor DEAP2 mediates an early step of photosystem II assembly in Arabidopsis. Plant Physiol 193(3):1970-1986. doi: 10.1093/plphys/kiad446.
5. Uflewski M, Mielke S, Correa Galvis V, von Bismarck T, Chen X, Tietz E, Ruß J, Luzarowski M, Sokolowska E, Skirycz A, Eirich J, Finkemeier I, Schöttler MA, Armbruster U (2021) Functional characterization of proton antiport regulation in the thylakoid membrane. Plant Physiology 187(4):2209-2229. doi: 10.1093/plphys/kiab135.
6. Kaiser E, Walther D, Armbruster U (2020) Growth under Fluctuating Light Reveals Large Trait Variation in a Panel of Arabidopsis Accessions. Plants (Basel) 9(3). doi: 10.3390/plants9030319.
7. Correa Galvis V, Strand DD, Messer M, Thiele W, Bethmann S, Hübner D, Uflewski M, Kaiser E, Siemiatkowska B, Morris BA, Tóth SZ, Watanabe M, Brückner F, Höfgen R, Jahns P, Schöttler MA, Armbruster U (2020) H(+) Transport by K(+) EXCHANGE ANTIPORTER3 Promotes Photosynthesis and Growth in Chloroplast ATP Synthase Mutants. Plant Physiol 182(4):2126-2142. doi: 10.1104/pp.19.01561.
8. Höhner R, Galvis VC, Strand DD, Völkner C, Krämer M, Messer M, Dinc F, Sjuts I, Bölter B, Kramer DM, Armbruster U, Kunz HH (2019) Photosynthesis in Arabidopsis Is Unaffected by the Function of the Vacuolar K(+) Channel TPK3. Plant Physiol 180(3):1322-1335. doi: 10.1104/pp.19.00255.
9. Armbruster U, Leonelli L, Correa Galvis V, Strand D, Quinn EH, Jonikas MC, Niyogi KK (2016) Regulation and Levels of the Thylakoid K+/H+ Antiporter KEA3 Shape the Dynamic Response of Photosynthesis in Fluctuating Light. Plant Cell Physiol 57(7):1557-1567. doi: 10.1093/pcp/pcw085.
10. Armbruster U, Carrillo LR, Venema K, Pavlovic L, Schmidtmann E, Kornfeld A, Jahns P, Berry JA, Kramer DM, Jonikas MC (2014) Ion antiport accelerates photosynthetic acclimation in fluctuating light environments. Nat Commun 5:5439. doi: 10.1038/ncomms6439.