Biography:Agu Laisk

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Agu Laisk
Laisk in his laboratory (2010)
Born (1938-05-03) 3 May 1938 (age 87)
Tartu, Estonia
CitizenshipEstonian
Alma materUniversity of Tartu
Known forThe Laisk method (a gas-exchange approach used to estimate leaf respiration in the light and related CO2-exchange parameters)[1][2][3]
AwardsOrder of the White Star, 4th Class (2001)[4]
Estonian national research award (1999, with Vello Oja)[5]
Estonian national research award (2018, lifetime achievement)[6]
Scientific career
FieldsPlant physiology, biophysics, photosynthesis research
InstitutionsUniversity of Tartu

Agu Laisk (born 3 May 1938) is an Estonian plant physiologist and physicist. He is a professor emeritus at the University of Tartu and a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences (elected 1994).[7][8]

His research has focused on the physiology and biophysics of photosynthesis and photorespiration, including gas-exchange measurement approaches and mathematical modelling of leaf CO2 exchange.[8][9]

Education and early career

Laisk studied physics at the University of Tartu, graduating in 1961.[7] He earned a Soviet-era Candidate of Sciences degree (physics and mathematics) in 1965 and a Doctor of Sciences degree in biology in 1975, with research on the kinetics of leaf photosynthesis and photorespiration.[7][4]

Academic career

From the 1960s to the early 1990s, Laisk worked in research institutes of the Estonian Academy of Sciences, where he led work linking plant-canopy radiation physics with physiological interpretation of photosynthesis.[8][4] From 1992 he worked at the University of Tartu (Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology), becoming professor and heading plant physiology, and later serving as senior researcher and professor emeritus.[8][7][4]

He has held visiting research positions at several universities and research institutes, including the Australian National University and other European and U.S. institutions, as documented in institutional CV material.[4]

Research

Laisk’s work addresses quantitative limitations and regulation of photosynthetic CO2 assimilation in C3 plants, including the interaction between photosynthesis and photorespiration and the interpretation of gas-exchange signals under varying light and CO2 conditions.[8][9]

Laisk method

In plant ecophysiology, the term Laisk method commonly refers to a gas-exchange procedure based on measuring net CO2 assimilation at low intercellular CO2 (A/Ci) across multiple irradiances and using the intersection properties of these relationships to estimate respiration in the light (and related CO2-exchange parameters used in modelling).[1][2][3] The method is widely discussed and compared with alternative approaches in the peer-reviewed literature, including assessments of assumptions and applicability across conditions.[10]

Awards and honours

  • 1994: elected member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences.[7]
  • 1999: Estonian national research award (chemistry and molecular biology), shared with Vello Oja.[5]
  • 2001: Order of the White Star, 4th Class.[4]
  • 2007: Estonian Academy of Sciences medal (recipient list includes Laisk).[11]
  • 2013: University of Tartu Grand Medal (recipient list includes Laisk).[12]
  • 2018: Estonian national research award (lifetime achievement).[6][9]

Selected works

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Villar, R. (1994). "Comparison of Methods to Estimate Dark Respiration in the Light in Leaves of Two Woody Species". Plant Physiology 105 (1): 167–172. doi:10.1104/pp.104.3.971. PMID 12232141. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Yin, X. (2011). "Evaluating a new method to estimate the rate of leaf respiration in the light in C3 species". Journal of Experimental Botany 62 (10): 3489–3499. doi:10.1093/jxb/err038. PMID 21382918. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Schmiege, S. C. (2023). "Laisk measurements in the nonsteady state: Tests in plants exposed to warming and variable CO2 concentrations". New Phytologist 458. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131996. PMID 37423135. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "NIMI Agu Laisk – curriculum vitae (PDF)". Estonian Academy of Sciences. https://www.akadeemia.ee/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/laisk_2019.pdf. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Riigi teaduspreemiate määramine (1999) (PDF)". Riigi Teataja. https://www.riigiteataja.ee/akt/77115.pdf. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Riigi teaduspreemiate määramine (2018)". Riigi Teataja. https://www.riigiteataja.ee/akt/313022018004. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 "Agu Laisk". Estonian Academy of Sciences. https://www.akadeemia.ee/en/member/laisk/. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Yearbook 2008. Estonian Academy of Sciences. https://www.akadeemia.ee/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/yearbook-2008.pdf. Retrieved 17 February 2026. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "University of Tartu scientists won four national research awards". University of Tartu. 19 February 2018. https://ut.ee/en/content/university-tartu-scientists-won-four-national-research-awards. 
  10. ↑ Yin, X. (2024). "Estimating leaf day respiration from conventional gas exchange measurements". Trends in Plant Science 241 (1): 52–58. doi:10.1111/nph.19330. PMID 37858976. Bibcode: 2024NewPh.241...52Y. 
  11. ↑ "Eesti Teaduste Akadeemia medali saajad (PDF)". Estonian Academy of Sciences. https://www.akadeemia.ee/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/eta-medali-saajad-2021.-a-lopu-seisuga-1.pdf. 
  12. ↑ "Tartu Ülikooli suur medal – varasemad kavalerid". University of Tartu. 14 November 2021. https://ut.ee/et/sisu/tartu-ulikooli-suur-medal. 
  13. ↑ Shevela, D. (2010). "Agu Laisk, Ladislav Nedbal, and Govindjee (eds): Photosynthesis in silico. Understanding complexity from molecules to ecosystems". Photosynthesis Research 103 (2): 139–140. doi:10.1007/s11120-009-9514-3. 
  14. ↑ Lawlor, D. W. (2010). "Photosynthesis in silico. Understanding complexity from molecules to ecosystems". Annals of Botany 105 (4): 659–660. doi:10.1210/me.2009-0387. PMID 20150185. 
  15. ↑ "Ülevaade akadeemikute olulisimatest publikatsioonidest 2023 (PDF)". Estonian Academy of Sciences. https://www.akadeemia.ee/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/akadeemikute-publikatsioonid-2023-1.pdf. 



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