C-SPIRIT News: May 2026

Friday, May 29th, 2026

Upcoming C-SPIRIT Member Survey

The Evaluation Center at Western Michigan University will be reaching out to C-SPIRIT members in the next few weeks to invite them to provide feedback on our research collaboration. This feedback will be collected in the form of a survey, and the survey will take around 15 minutes to complete. C-SPIRIT members, please keep an eye out for this email in your inbox. Your input is essential to helping us better understand how our collaboration is working, identify opportunities for improvement, and continue strengthening C-SPIRIT as a productive and supportive research center.

C-SPIRIT Lab Spotlight: The Provart Lab

This month, C-SPIRIT launches its new Lab Spotlight feature with the Provart Lab at the University of Toronto. These spotlights will highlight the labs and tools that support C-SPIRIT’s work across disciplines, species, and research aims. The first installment explores how the Provart Lab’s data visualization resources help make complex plant biology datasets easier to access, compare, and use across the Center. Here’s a preview:

“‘Our goal is to help make the datasets that are being generated by C-SPIRIT easily accessible,’ Provart says.

One way the lab is doing that is by building crop-specific ePlant viewers. These tools give researchers a visual way to explore how genes behave across tissues, treatments, and stress conditions. Instead of starting with raw data files, users can search for a gene of interest and quickly see where it is active, how its expression changes, and whether it may be responding to stress.”

Institutional Feature: Korea Polar Research Institute

This month in the C-SPIRIT Institutional Feature Series, we are spotlighting the Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI), where C-SPIRIT members Jun Hyuck Lee, Jisub Hwang, and Hackwon Do contribute expertise across several areas of the center’s collaborative research program.

KOPRI researchers support efforts ranging from the discovery of stress-responsive metabolites from polar microorganisms to the identification of genes and pathways associated with bioactive compound production. Their work also advances metabolite annotation, biological characterization, and research that helps expand understanding of how organisms adapt to extreme environments.

Through their work in polar microbiology and bioactive compound research, KOPRI team members contribute valuable insight that strengthens collaboration across the C-SPIRIT research network and supports the development of resilient and sustainable agricultural systems.
 

Publication from SunMoon University C-SPIRIT Members!

Congratulations to C-SPIRIT members Woo-Haeng Lee and Tae-Jin Oh (SunMoon University), as well as their colleagues, on the publication of their article titled “Interpretable convolutional neural networks for sequence-based classification and discovery of plastic-degrading enzymes” in Applied and Environmental Microbiology! Their study introduces PEPIC, an explainable deep learning framework that classifies plastic-degrading enzymes across nine substrate types directly from protein sequences. The model outperformed existing approaches while providing residue-level interpretations that align with known catalytic and substrate-binding regions, supporting trustworthy enzyme discovery. These findings offer a scalable tool for identifying plastic-degrading biocatalysts and support C-SPIRIT’s mission to advance sustainable environmental solutions through data-driven biotechnology.

North Central Division American Phytopathological Society Meeting at MSU – June 10–12, 2026

The 2026 North Central Division Meeting of the American Phytopathological Society will take place June 10–12 in East Lansing, Michigan, with the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center serving as the conference home base. The meeting will bring together plant pathology researchers, students, and professionals for a regional program featuring research tours, workshops, selected abstract presentations, poster sessions, networking opportunities, and a dinner and awards program. Program focus areas include disease management and epidemiology, molecular and cellular plant–microbe interactions, pathogen systems such as fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes, and host systems spanning grains, fruits, vegetables, turf, and more. The schedule also highlights Michigan State University research and facilities, including stops at the Agronomy Farm, Plant Pathology Farm, MSU Pollinator Center, and the new MSU Dairy Cattle Teaching & Research Center.

Details:

• Dates: Wednesday, June 10 - Friday, June 12, 2026
• Location: Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center
• Registration Deadline: June 9th, 2026

65th Annual Meeting of the Phytochemical Society of North America (PSNA 2026) — June 15–19, 2026

The 65th Annual Meeting of the Phytochemical Society of North America (PSNA 2026) will bring together a supportive community of scientists interested in phytochemical research, including the chemistry, biochemistry, physiology, evolution, and chemical ecology of plant natural products. The meeting will feature keynote and plenary talks, thematic scientific sessions, poster presentations, and interactive workshops on topics such as natural product chemistry and artificial intelligence, metabolic pathway discovery and evolution, plant-derived nutrition and medicine, ethnobotany, and plant synthetic biology.

C-SPIRIT member Gaurav Moghe (Cornell University) is a speaker at this event. Be sure to connect if you plan to attend!

Details:

• Dates: Monday, June 15 – Friday, June 19, 2026

• Location: Memorial Union, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA

• Registration Deadline: May 31st, 2026

20th International Biotechnology Symposium and Exhibition (IBS2026) — June 28–July 2, 2026

The 20th International Biotechnology Symposium and Exhibition (IBS2026) is an international meeting that brings together researchers, industry leaders, and innovators across the biotechnology sector. The symposium will feature plenary lectures, thematic sessions, and technical presentations spanning areas such as enzyme engineering, bioprocessing, environmental and industrial biotechnology, genome technologies, and sustainable bio-based innovation. IBS2026 provides a global platform for sharing cutting-edge research, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and advancing biotechnology solutions for societal and environmental challenges.

C-SPIRIT members Motoaki Seki, Katherine Rivera-Zuluaga, Nicolas Schlecht, Miyo Yamane, Shogo Kuwayama, Toon Suzuki, and Suzuka Matsuki will be presenting during the session "Global Partnerships in Biotechnology through ASPIRE." Be sure to stop by and listen in if you are attending!

Details:

• Dates: Sunday, June 28 – Thursday, July 2, 2026

• Location: Kobe International Conference Center, Kobe, Japan

• Registration Deadline: July 2nd, 2026

Let us know about your upcoming talks!

Want to see your presentation/talk listed here? Feel free to email us at C-SPIRIT.Admin@msu.edu if you would like us to advertise your talk!

This work is funded by the United States National Science Foundation (NSF) grant OISE-2434687; the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) grant ALLRP 597259-24; the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) grant 2007-2024-1003; the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT), grant RS-2024-00441423; the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) ASPIRE program, grant JPMJAP24A3; and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) grant BB/Z517082/1.