UV is the part of the sunlight’s spectrum that is widely associated with sunburns and skin cancer. Only a few people know that exposure to low doses of UV radiation, has a positive impact on most organisms. For example, the accumulation of UV screening components in plants plays an essential role for gut microflora and human health.

UV is the part of the sunlight’s spectrum that is widely associated with sunburns and skin cancer. Only a few people know that exposure to low doses of UV radiation, has a positive impact on most organisms. For example, the accumulation of UV screening components in plants plays an essential role for gut microflora and human health. UV radiation and plant photosynthesis maintain the Ozonosphere, a protective layer crucial for life on Earth.

UV radiation and its impact on organisms, mainly plants, was the subject of the conference 4th Network Meeting of the UV4Plants Association and the UV4Plants Training School, taking place in Kraków from the 2nd to 6th of July 2022. The meeting was organized by the UV4Plants Association, based in Helsinki, and the local organizing committee from Poland Justyna Łabuz from the Malopolska Biotechnology Centre (MCB) of Jagiellonian University (JU) and Wojciech Strzałka and Agnieszka Katarzyna Banaś from the Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology of JU.

The conference aimed to bring together leading UV scientists and early-stage researchers to exchange and share their experiences and study results on all aspects of UV radiation. Additionally, the meeting provided an opportunity to build scientific contacts and networking.

Photo: MCB UJ

About 60 scientists from 14 European countries and South and North Americas came to Krakow. The guests were welcomed by Dr. Danuta Earnshaw nee Mossakowska prof. JU, the Director of the MCB, and prof. Artur Osyczka, the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of JU. During the conference, the paricipants discussed the following topics in the context of UV radiation: plant adaptation and acclimation under natural conditions, photoreception, signaling in plants, and DNA damage and repair.
The conference participants had the opportunity to take a virtual tour around Krakow guided by Mateusz Tomaszczyk, who talked about the charm and magic of the city, followed by sighseeing in places of historical, cultural, and social importance in the Krakow city center.

Text: Anna Hebda