Basic research is carried out at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, as at all 86 institutes of the Max Planck Society. The institute's work is focused on the research of processes that determine or influence plant growth and biomass production. In this context, substance uptake via the root, the breakdown and degradation of metabolites, their transport, storage and mobilization, and the question of how these processes are regulated, are analyzed. Methods are used that allow a large number of samples to be analyzed for their constituent composition and gene activities. With the help of bioinformatics, computer models can be created from the large amount of data collected. Other research topics deal with the physiology and genetics of cell organelles such as plastids and mitochondria as well as the molecular mechanisms of the evolution of plant genomes. The spectrum of methods includes techniques of molecular biology, genetics, physiology, biochemistry, biophysics and bioinformatics.