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.
2 of 5
- Glyphosate residues in soil can modify plant resistance to herbivores through changes in leaf quality (2022)
- Plant Biology
- Legacy of agrochemicals in the circular food economy: Glyphosate-based herbicides introduced via manure fertilizer affect the yield and biochemistry of perennial crop plants during the following year (2022)
- Chemosphere
- Management practice and soil properties affect plant productivity and root biomass in endophyte-symbiotic and endophyte-free meadow fescue grasses (2022)
- Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment
- Quantification of the Potential Impact of Glyphosate-Based Products on Microbiomes (2022)
- Journal of Visualized Experiments
- Root biomass and cumulative yield increase with mowing height in Festuca pratensis irrespective of Epichloë symbiosis (2022)
- Scientific Reports
- Adaptation of bacteria to glyphosate: a microevolutionary perspective of the enzyme 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (2021)
- Environmental Microbiology Reports
- Classification of the glyphosate target enzyme (5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase) for assessing sensitivity of organisms to the herbicide (2021)
- Journal of Hazardous Materials
- Genetic Diversity of the Symbiotic Fungus Epichloë festucae in Naturally Occurring Host Grass Populations (2021)
- Frontiers in Microbiology
- Glyphosate-Modulated Biosynthesis Driving Plant Defense and Species Interactions (2021)
- Trends in Plant Science
- Risk in the circular food economy: Glyphosate-based herbicide residues in manure fertilizers decrease crop yield (2021)
- Science of the Total Environment
- Does Epichloë Endophyte Enhance Host Tolerance to Root Hemiparasite? (2020)
- Microbial Ecology
- Effects of parental exposure to glyphosate-based herbicides on embryonic development and oxidative status: a long-term experiment in a bird model (2020)
- Scientific Reports
- Female Preference and Adverse Developmental Effects of Glyphosate-Based Herbicides on Ecologically Relevant Traits in Japanese Quails (2020)
- Environmental Science and Technology
- Glyphosate-based herbicide affects the composition of microbes associated with Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) (2020)
- FEMS Microbiology Letters
- Glyphosate-based herbicide has soil-mediated effects on potato glycoalkaloids and oxidative status of a potato pest (2020)
- Chemosphere
- Glyphosate-based herbicides influence antioxidants, reproductive hormones and gut microbiome but not reproduction: A long-term experiment in an avian model (2020)
- Environmental Pollution
- Insect oviposition preference between Epichloe-symbiotic and Epichloe-free grasses does not necessarily reflect larval performance (2020)
- Ecology and Evolution
- Toward Comprehensive Plant Microbiome Research (2020)
- Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
- Universities safeguarding global biodiversity and human health (2020) Kotiaho J, Oksanen E, Ruotsalainen AL, Saikkonen K, Schulman L, Sääksjärvi IE
- Variation and plasticity in Epichloë alkaloid content of Festuca rubra across Europe (2020)
- Fungal Ecology
UTU Research Portal