Volume 13, Number 1, 2004
A UD marine biologist whose work has important economic implications for agriculture in dry climates has been honored by the Australian Academy of Science.
John S. Boyer, E.I. du Pont Professor of Marine Biochemistry/Biophysics in the College of Marine Studies, was elected to the academy as a corresponding member. The distinction is reserved for scientists "who are eminent in respect of scientific discoveries and attainments" and who do not normally reside in Australia, according to the academy.
With the award, Boyer joins a distinguished group of 22 scientists, six of whom are Nobel laureates.
The Australian Academy of Science, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, comprises approximately 370 of Australia's top scientists. Sixteen scientists, who are judged by their peers to have made an exceptional contribution to knowledge in their field, are elected annually to the academy. In contrast, no more than two corresponding members may be elected each year.
Boyer's research focuses on understanding how saline and drought conditions can inhibit plant growth. Saline conditions, which occur when soil has a high salt content, can occur anywhere, but they cause particular problems in arid and semi-arid areas. These lands typically must be irrigated--a practice that can increase the concentration of salt in the soil.
"Australia is an extremely old continent," Boyer says. "Much of its agricultural soil comes from rocks that have been weathering for millions of years. As a result, the soil is naturally high in salt, which has dissolved from the rocks through the weathering process. In addition, much of the land lies in semi-arid areas that must be irrigated."
According to Sue Serjeantson, executive secretary of the Australian Academy of Science, "Dr. Boyer was selected based on the many contributions he has made to our knowledge of the mechanisms by which plants respond to water stress or salinity. These subjects are of great scientific interest and economic importance to Australia because agricultural industries have been, and continue to be, important contributors to Australia's prosperity."
Figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicate that Australia exported about $1.8 billion in agricultural products to the United States in 2002.
"Dr. Boyer has been involved with a number of cooperative projects with colleagues in Australia," Serjeantson says. "His work has had a profound effect on Australian research in these areas."
Boyer has traveled to Australia several times to conduct research, and last year, he spent four months in Canberra, the nation's capital. Currently, he is helping his colleagues in Australia develop genetic types of wheat that can tolerate high concentrations of salt in the soil. Durum wheat, for example, is an economically valuable crop, used for making pasta, and is highly sensitive to salt content in the soil.
"It is very exciting to have an entire country interested in the area that you are researching," Boyer says of his recognition by the academy. "In many parts of the United States, we are not as affected by salinity and drought conditions as Australia, but we do need to be careful."
Boyer has written more than 150 peer-reviewed scientific papers and has published two books. Last year, the Institute for Scientific Information listed him among the 250 most cited scientists in the world in the plant and animal sciences.
In 1990, Boyer was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences, considered one of the highest honors that can be bestowed on a scientist. He received a senior scientist award in 1983 from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany, which grants the award on the basis of internationally recognized academic qualifications. In 1977, he received the Charles Albert Shull Award from the American Society of Plant Physiologists for "outstanding contributions to plant physiology."
Boyer joined the College of Marine Studies faculty in 1987, when he was named E.I. du Pont Professor of Marine Biochemistry/Biophysics, a designation that honors distinguished teaching and scholarship. In 1999, he received the Francis Alison Award, the University's highest faculty award.
--Kari K.Gulbrandsen, EG '91M