Rate My Professor John Patrick

Emeritus Professor John Patrick holds a Bachelor of Science (Agriculture) from the University of Sydney and a PhD from Macquarie University on vascular control of biomass partitioning. He completed a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Wales studying hormonal control of biomass partitioning. In 1973, he joined the University of Newcastle as one of the foundation academics in the Department of Biological Sciences, progressing to Lecturer (1973-1978), Senior Lecturer (1978-1988), Associate Professor (1988-2001), Professor in the School of Environmental and Life Sciences (2001-2008), and Personal Chair in Biological Sciences (2000), before becoming Emeritus Professor in 2008. He served as Visiting Professor at the University of Adelaide (2004) and University of Tuebingen (2001), Scientific Advisor to CSR Australia (2004-), Honorary Secretary of the Australian Society of Plant Scientists (2004-2007), and Chair of the Faculty Research Committee, Faculty of Science and IT (1999-2003). Patrick managed a LIEF-funded international standard plant growth facility (1979-2008) and contributed to various ARC panels and international committees.

His long-term research program elucidates mechanisms regulating nutrient transport and biomass partitioning in plants, focusing on phloem unloading, transfer cells, membrane transporters for sucrose release from maternal seed cells, wall labyrinth assembly, and nutrient filling of seeds and fruits, with applications to cereal grains and tomato yield improvement. Key publications include 'Sugar loading of crop seeds - a partnership of phloem, plasmodesmal and membrane transport' (2023), 'Amino acid transporters mediate autonomous delivery of nanoparticle vehicles into living plants' (2025), 'Long-distance transport' (2015), 'Phloem transport of resources' (2014), and 'Fundamentals of Phloem transport physiology' (2012). Achievements earned him Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Science (2017), NSW Premier’s Award for Research Excellence in Biological Sciences (2015), Life Membership of the Australian Society of Plant Scientists (2015), and the Sir Bob Robertson Lecture (2012). He served on editorial boards of Journal of Experimental Botany (1991-2012) and Functional Plant Biology (2008-2012). Collaborative efforts elevated University of Newcastle Plant Sciences to top global rankings (ERA 5).