Microbial recruitment by tomato and potato roots under nutrient deficiency

Melissa Uribe Acosta

Davar Abedini, MSc

PhD student at: University of Amsterdam (UvA), Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences (SILS), Plant Hormone Biology group

Supervisor: prof. H.J. Bouwmeester (SILS, UvA), supervisor: dr. L. Dong (SILS, UvA).

Overall aim: My project aims to unravel potato-microbes-PCNs chemical communications. As a PhD student at the MiCRop consortium, I am investigating the microbial recruitment by tomato/potato root under nitrogen deficiency. For this, I am using multiomics technology coupled with advanced analytical chemistry and molecular biology tools to uncover the signalling molecules and their corresponding genes.

Key Objectives & Expected Results

Objectives:

To explore bacterial and fungi compositions in potato and tomato roots under nitrogen defiecency

To identify signalling molecues mediating the plant-microbe interactions

To decipher biosynthetic genes involved in the biosynthesis of the signaling molecules

Expected Results:

Identification of the beneficial microbes that alleviate nitrogen starvation effects

Characterization of the biosynthetic genes and subsequently silencing them to evaluate the potential impacts on the root microbiota changes

Elucidation of the mechanisms involved in the interaction between the plant root and microbiota in controlled ways