Jonathan Gershenzon

ISCE Silver Medal

Jonathan Gershenzon is an American biochemist based at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany. He studies how plants produce defensive compounds and the role these compounds play in protecting plants. His research findings support the development of new, more sustainable methods to protect against agricultural pests.

He analyses the biosynthesis and function of plant defence compounds in order to gain new insights into the origin and role of these extraordinarily diverse chemical compounds. His research focuses, in particular, on how certain plant-eating insects are able to feed on chemically well protected plants without suffering any obviously negative effects. Through his work, he has shown how insects can bypass plants' defences using detoxification reactions or changing the target of the toxin. These findings give new insights into how plants' defences work and also how effective they are.
In recent years, Jonathan Gershenzon has focused much of his research efforts on woody plant defence responses, in particular the question of how these responses protect poplar and spruce species against insect herbivores. The ongoing and significant outbreak of bark beetle in the spruce forests of central Europe prompted his research group to look into potential preventative measures, based on a better understanding of the spruce trees' natural defence mechanisms and how these mechanisms could be improved.