Dr Efisio Mattana
Early Career Research Fellow
Department
Team
Sustainable Use, Seeds and Solutions
Specialism
Seed biology, plant ecology, ex situ plant conservation of wild, threatened and neglected underutilised species.
I am an Early Career Research Fellow working in the Diversity and Livelihoods team of the Natural Capital and Plant Health Department. With a background in seed biology, plant ecology and ex situ plant conservation of wild, threatened and neglected underutilised species, I carry out research on seed collections to achieve plant conservation and sustainable use, collaborating closely with various teams in Kew's Science departments.
- Undergraduate Studies, Natural Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy, 2002
- PhD, Environmental and Applied Botany, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy, 2009
- Postdoc Research Fellowship, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, 2009-2013
- Kew Honorary Visiting Research Associate, 2011
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Restoring the traditional Mediterranean diet through the conservation of wild edible plants
Promoting the sustainable use of the traditional Eastern Mediterranean diet, through the preservation of traditional knowledge and science-based conservation of wild edible plants in Jordan and Lebanon.
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Saving threatened forests of Hispaniola in the Dominican Republic
Supporting reforestation through seed conservation - a collaborative research programme between the Jardín Botánico Nacional in Santo Domingo and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew for the conservation of useful tree species in the Dominican Republic.
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Science-based conservation of tree species in Mexico
Supporting reforestation through seed conservation - a collaborative research programme between the Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, UNAM, México and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew for the conservation of useful tree species in Mexico.
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Project MGU - the Useful Plants Project
Enhancing the ex situ conservation of native useful plants for human wellbeing across Africa and Mexico by building the capacity of local communities to successfully conserve and use these species sustainably.
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Conserving native useful trees of Mexico to maintain its natural capital
Maintaining the natural capital of Mexican forests through research and conservation of useful native tree seeds.
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Global Tree Seed Bank Programme
Conserving some of the world’s rarest, endangered and useful tree and shrub species as well as conducting vital tree conservation research in order to retain a significant resource for humanity.
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Seed traits for tree production
This project combines research and technical development to investigate germination traits in UK native trees; to understand how these traits vary; and optimise commercial seed quality using high-throughput screening techniques.
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Enhancing carbon sequestration and improving livelihoods in Mexico's shade-grown coffee plantations
Exploring the role of smallholder coffee farms and native tree species in the future of climate change, through carbon sequestration and local livelihoods.
Fernández‐Pascual, E., Mattana, E. & Pritchard, H. W. (2018).
Seeds of future past: climate change and the thermal memory of plant reproductive traits.
Biological Reviews 94: 439 - 456.
Mattana, E., Gomez‐Barreiro, P., Lötter, M., Hankey, A.J., Froneman, W., Mamatsharaga, A., Wilkin, P. & Ulian, T. (2018).
Morphological and functional seed traits of the wild medicinal plant Dioscorea strydomiana, the most threatened yam in the world.
Plant Biology 21: 519 - 522.
Ulian T., Sacandé, M., Hudson, A. & Mattana, E. (2017).
Conservation of indigenous plants to support community livelihoods: the MGU – Useful Plants Project.
Journal of Environmental Planning and Management 60: 668-683.
Mattana, E., Pritchard, H. W., Porceddu, M., Stuppy, W. H. & Bacchetta, G. (2012).
Interchangeable effects of gibberellic acid and temperature on embryo growth, seed germination and epicotyl emergence in Ribes multiflorum ssp.sandalioticum (Grossulariaceae)
Plant Biology 14:77-87.
Orrù, M., Mattana, E., Pritchard, H. W. & Bacchetta, G. (2012).
Thermal thresholds as predictors of seed dormancy release and germination timing: altitude-related risks from climate warming for the wild grapevine Vitis viniferasubsp. sylvestris.
Annals of Botany 110: 1651-1660.