Klement, Zoltan

Biologist

Zoltán Klement was born in 1926. He is research professor of the Plant Conservation Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA), and leader of the Bacteriology Group of the Institute. He is a full member of the MTA, his main field of work is the research of bacterial plant diseases, in particular, the study of the defence mechanisms of plants. Along with his colleagues, he was the first to prove that disease resistant species defend themselves against pathogenic bacteria by a method known as hypersensitive reaction. Currently they are working on understanding the non-specific defence mechanisms of plants. Besides research and teaching, he is working on the development of agricultural higher-education and research policy. He spent many years as a visiting professor at universities in the US and in Germany. He has published his scientific achievements in leading international scientific journals, more than 120 bulletins and 8 books. The Hungarian Republic awarded his work with the Széchenyi award.

Self-defense of Plants