Scientists from the University of Liverpool are part of an
international research project to apply the properties of drought-adapted
desert plants, like agave, to poplar trees, a recognised biofuel crop.
Dr James Hartwell, from the Institute of Integrative
Biology, is part of an £8.6million project, funded by the US Department of
Energy that aims to explore the photosynthetic mechanisms of drought-tolerant
desert plants and introduce these into poplar trees.