Kari Saikkonen
Education
Ph.D., University
of Turku, Finland, 1994
Previous work experience
Research professor, Natural Resources
Institute Finland, Luke, 2009 – 2018
Station Manager, Kevo Subarctic Research
Institute, University of Turku, 2007 – 2009
Research professor, MTT Agrifood Research
Finland, 2005 - 2007
Academy Research Fellow Post, Academy of
Finland, 2000 - 2005
Senior Researcher, University of Turku (funded
by Academy of Finland) 1997 – 2000
Post-doctoral research fellow, Department of Zoology,
Arizona State University, USA (funded by Maytag Foundation and Academy of
Finland), 1995 - 1997
My current research involves three main themes: (1) ecological
and evolutionary implications of genetic variation, species richness and
functional diversity of plants and associated
micro-fungi (incl. mycorrhizae, endophytes and pathogens) and herbivores, (2)
climate change -driven species’ range shifts, and (3) new solutions to
circumvent the heavy use of fertilizers and pesticides in man-made environments.
- Abundance and Diversity of Aerobic Anoxygenic Phototrophic Bacteria in Polar Plant Microbiomes (2025)
- Physiologia PlantarumPhytobiomes journalEnvironmental Sciences Europe
- Betula pendula Roth. survival and growth in treeline is affected by genotype and environment (2025)
- Scientific Reports
- Glyphosate and phosphate treatments in soil differentially affect crop microbiomes depending on species, tissue and growth stage (2025)
- Scientific Reports
- Glyphosate residues in soil and phosphate fertilizer affect foliar endophytic microbial community composition and phytohormone levels in potato (2024)
- Greenhouse study and interviews indicate glyphosate residue via feed-feces-fertilizer route is a risk for horticultural producers using manure-based fertilizer (2024)
- Plant metabolic responses to soil herbicide residues differ under herbivory in two woodland strawberry genotypesEpichloë Endophytes Shape the Foliar Endophytic Fungal Microbiome and Alter the Auxin and Salicylic Acid Phytohormone Levels in Two Meadow Fescue Cultivars (2024)
- Science of the Total Environment
- Toward an integrated understanding of how extreme polar light regimes, hybridization, and light-sensitive microbes shape global biodiversity (2024)
- One EarthScience of the Total Environment
- Ecosystem consequences of herbicides: the role of microbiome (2023)
- Trends in Ecology and Evolution
- Endophytic Beauveria bassiana induces biosynthesis of flavonoids in oilseed rape following both seed inoculation and natural colonization (2023)
- Pest Management Science
- Endophytic Fungus Negatively Affects Salt Tolerance of Tall Fescue (2023)
- Journal of Fungi
- (2023)
- Journal of Fungi
- Field-realistic acute exposure to glyphosate-based herbicide impairs fine-color discrimination in bumblebees (2023)
- Glyphosate and a glyphosate-based herbicide affect bumblebee gut microbiota (2023)
- FEMS Microbiology Ecology
- Glyphosate-based herbicide use affects individual microbial taxa in strawberry endosphere but not the microbial community composition (2023)
- Journal of Applied Microbiology
- Herbicide residues in soil decrease microbe-mediated plant protection (2023)
- Plant Biology
- A Glyphosate-Based Herbicide in Soil Differentially Affects Hormonal Homeostasis and Performance of Non-target Crop Plants (2022)
- Frontiers in Plant Science
- Dark septate endophytes: mutualism from by-products? (2022)
- Trends in Plant Science
- Does Glyphosate Affect the Human Microbiota? (2022)
- Life
- Epichloë Endophyte-Promoted Seed Pathogen Increases Host Grass Resistance Against Insect Herbivory (2022)
- Frontiers in Microbiology
- Glyphosate residues alter the microbiota of a perennial weed with a minimal indirect impact on plant performance (2022)
- Plant and Soil