Starting in the 1990s, the Plant Research Lab initiated a culture of group projects, which combined the talents of Plant Research Lab faculty members with scientists from other departments at Michigan State University, in order to tackle difficult and risky research projects. Projects included the biosynthesis of cell wall components, establishing a genetic system for the nitrogen-fixing actinomycete Frankia, studying the molecular basis of flower induction, studying membrane-tethered transcription factors, and others.
