Rate My Professor Stefan Kepinski

Professor Stefan Kepinski is Professor of Plant Sciences in the Faculty of Biological Sciences at the University of Leeds, serving as Head of the School of Biology and Associate Director of the Global Food and Environment Institute. He earned his BSc and PhD from the University of Liverpool. His research centers on the regulation of plant development by the hormone auxin, with expertise in plant development, root and shoot system architecture, gravitropism and growth angle control, auxin transport and signalling, auxin perception, and herbicide development. Key projects explore auxin-regulated processes including receptor complex formation and structural biology of auxin perception, root hair development, context-specificity in auxin signalling using root epidermis models, and growth angle control via gravitropic setpoint angles in lateral roots, branches, and organs. He employs genetics, molecular genetics, cell biology, computational modelling, and omics technologies such as whole genome resequencing for mutation identification and single cell RNA sequencing. Additionally, his work addresses pathways to regenerative net zero agriculture, focusing on reducing synthetic nitrogen fertilizer use, carbon sequestration, and decarbonization through plasma-based livestock slurry processing and on-farm energy production.