Visit of French MSc students to CPSBB

On March 8, 2019, twenty-seven Master degree students in European studies from the Cergy Pontoise University, France, visited the Center of Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology (CPSBB) Plovdiv. The main objective of the visit was to learn more about the implementation of European policies in the field of research and innovation.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tsanko Gechev welcomed the delegation and delivered an overview presentation dedicated to the main objectives of the PlantaSYST project and the establishment of CPSBB. The accents in the presentation included the direct benefits for socio-economic development of Plovdiv and the region due to the implementation of the PlantaSYST project, as well as the importance of such projects for the advancement of the fundamental and applied science in Bulgaria.

Assoc. Prof. Gechev pointed out that the PlantaSYST project is one of the largest scientific and infrastructural projects in Bulgaria. In the second year of its realization, the project has the potential to introduce novel diagnostic tools and technologies for plant breeding, new vegetable varieties resistant to biotic and abiotic stresses, improved yield stability and nutritional qualities as well as plant-derived products with new pharmaceutical properties for innovative applications in medicine. Addressing these issues of local and global importance the PlantaSYST project and CPSBB once again put the emphasis on the cutting edge research and development.

A fruitful discussion on a number of questions raised by the students was held after the presentation. The visit concluded with a tour at the CPSBB laboratories and plant growth facilities.