Adam Abdullahi
Graduate Student
University of Pennsylvania
Biology Department
Posted 1-22-25

@plantheist (x and bluesky)

My research lies broadly at the intersection of grass ecophysiology and evolution. On a finer scale, I am using principles from grass leaf hydraulics to understand how and why the C4 system has repeatedly evolved in this family. It is helpful for photosynthesis to be pictured as plants exchanging costly water for needed carbon. Therefore compared to the typical C3 system, the C4 system is a turbocharged form of photosynthesis, where plants get better value for their water currency. This is made possible due to certain anatomical and biochemical reconfiguration of the basic C3 plan. While the C4 system is a complex trait, grasses have evolved it repeatedly with apparent ease. Each step from the typical C3 to C4 has been assumed adaptive, yet grasses have a low number of physiological intermediates. This is somewhat of a paradox. To help in resolving this paradox, my projects in the Helliker lab revolve around testing physiological intuitions with mathematical models, generating testable hypotheses from these models, and testing these with experiments (physiological/anatomical). Our predictions mainly concern the stomata and bundle sheath cells (BSCs). Stomata are the ports of exchange of gaseous CO2-H2O while BSCs are the newly repurposed sites for CO2 fixation, in the C4 system, as well as vital in liquid H2O movement.

Checking up on grasses in the greenhouse.

How Adam got interested in the botanical sciences:

I have always seen plants as being passive. We actively use them for food, decor, and fuel. However, once it was explained to me how sugary fruits can be viewed as bribes/payments that plants “give” animals so that the latter can help them spread their seeds far, interesting perspectives opened up. But to fully fathom this simple phenomenon requires familiarity with concepts from many fields of plant biology. I was not able to fully appreciate the depths of this phenomenon (amongst others) until I studied Botany at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. We studied all facets of plant biology (as much as we were capable of!) from plant biochemistry to physiology to ecology to anatomy to genetics. New questions, naturally, arose as old ones were answered. Questions like “What do plants whose seeds we eat benefit from our interaction with them? Must they benefit? Why the convergence of certain chemicals as attractants?” etc. Now, I study grasses, arguably the best bribe-givers. Yes, cereals form the backbone of our food system, directly or via forage. I am concentrating on one major trait in their suite of traits that has aided their success. The C4 system affords grasses the ability to colonize and subsist in hot and dry regions.

Adam's advice for those just starting their botanical journey:

Stay curious and always observe. Try knowing your plants, even beyond your scope of study. Get good friends as nice and honest sounding boards and be ready to reciprocate

Adam's other passions:

Poetry. I also love taking long walks, morning or evening. I love to discover new parts of the city, try new food, and spend quality time with friends and family.

Click here to return to BSA Spotlight Series homepage.