Ernst Küster

Who was Ernst Küster?

Ernst Küster was a German botanist known for his work in plant cell research.

In 1896, he obtained his doctorate from the University of Munich under the sponsorship of Ludwig Radlkofer. After a few years of scientific travel, he served as an assistant to Georg Albrecht Klebs at the University of Halle. In 1900 he received his habilitation with the thesis Beiträge zur Anatomie der Gallen. From 1909 to 1911 he worked with Johannes Reinke at Kiel, becoming an associate professor in 1910. Afterwards he worked with Eduard Strasburger in Bonn, and in 1920 succeeded Adolph Hansen as director of the botanical institute at Giessen.

Küster made important contributions in his research involving the physiological and chemical processes associated with plant cells. He is remembered for his investigations of plasmolysis and the morphology of plant protoplasm. From 1903 to 1951 he was editor of Zeitschrift für wissenschaftliche Mikroskopie.