CONSERVATION OF FOREST GENETIC RESOURCES
FROM MOLECULAR BASIS OF SEED LONGEVITY TO BIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION
27 OCTOBER 2026 | PARIS, FRANCE
The Scientific Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Paris
HYBRID EVENT
Participation will be possible on-site in Paris and online via Microsoft Teams.
Online participation: Please join the event via the Microsoft Teams link available below:
https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/374535002926322?p=h59CJyBDtO6h3Ss3Fl
The online access link will be provided closer to the event date.
ABOUT THE EVENT
The conservation of forest genetic resources is becoming increasingly important in the face of climate change, extreme weather events and the continuing loss of biodiversity.
Seeds are at the heart of this challenge. As carriers of genetic information and the basis for generational renewal, they play a fundamental role in forest regeneration, adaptation and long-term ecosystem resilience.
The scientific meeting will bring together researchers from Poland and France to present current advances in seed longevity, mechanisms underlying seed preservation, forest genetic resource conservation and ex situ biodiversity protection.
Particular attention will be given to the role of gene banks, seed storage strategies and modern molecular approaches in safeguarding forest genetic diversity and maintaining the adaptive potential of tree populations.
The event will provide a forum for scientific exchange, interdisciplinary discussion and the development of future Polish–French research cooperation in the field of forest genetic resource conservation.
PROGRAM
9:00 – OPENING
9:00-09:30 – Andrzej M. Jagodziński – Institute of Dendrology, Polish Academy of Sciences: two centuries of trees, decades of science
9:30-10:00 – Czesław Kozioł – Genetic aspects linked to static ex situ conservation, production and use of forest reproductive material
10:00-10:30 – Christophe Bailly – Seed biology in a changing climate: challenges for seed quality and plant adaptation
10:30-10:50 – Julia Zinsmeister – From chromatin to mitochondria: molecular determinants of seed longevity in Arabidopsis and rice
10:50-11:00 – DISCUSSION
11:30-12:00 – Mélisande Blein-Nicolas – Proteomics as a cornerstone in deciphering the genotype-phenotype relationship
12:00-12:20 – Tomasz A. Pawłowski – Mechanism of European beech adaptation to environmental conditions in the seed germination process
12:20-12:40 – Hanna Fuchs – From quantity to quality: climatic drivers of European beech seed mass and viability
12:40-13:00 – Mikołaj K. Wawrzyniak – From seeds to embryos: cryopreservation for the long-term storage of plant genetic resources
13:00-13:20 Ewa M. Kalemba - The same genus but different physiology – how orthodoxy and recalcitrance affect seed traits in Acer species
13:20-13:40 Chandrodhay Saccaram – Characterizing the seed spermosphere: fundamental insights into exudate-mediated seed–microbial interactions for sustainable crop protection
13:40-14:10 – DISCUSSION
ORGANISED BY
Institute of Dendrology, Polish Academy of Sciences
and
The Scientific Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Paris