The Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research is committed to a number of research goals, one of which is "to determine whether and how a detailed understanding of molecular mechanisms defined in model plant species can be used to rationally manipulate selected traits in crop plants." The Institute was founded in 1928 as part of the Kaiser-Willhelm-Gesellschaft and the first director, Edwin Baur, was interested in creating breeding programs with fruits and berries, though the Institute's scope has expanded since then. Visitors to the homepage should start by clicking on the News section. Here they can peruse recent releases from the Institute on how plants use mobile proteins to defend themselves against bacteria and the evolutionary "dead end" of powdery mildew. Scholars and others will want to click on the Reports and Publications area to look at some recent scholarly works and annual reports from 2009, 2006, and 2003. Moving on, the Public Outreach area contains a nice photo gallery and additional publications.