Project Details
Projekt
Exploring the genetic dialogue between Arabidopsis immunity and root endophyte accommodation programs
Applicant
Professorin Dr. Jane E. Parker
Subject Area
Organismic Interactions, Chemical Ecology and Microbiomes of Plant Systems
Term
since 2018
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 401771376
In nature, plants support microbial communities in and around roots and leaves, and there are many examples of beneficial and protective effects of individual microbes or consortia on the plant. The processes determining recruitment and maintenance of productive root endophytes are not well understood. There are some indications that plant immunity recognition and immune-related defense metabolites, such as glucosinolates and secreted coumarins, act as gate-keepers in controlling bacterial and fungal activities and limiting over-colonization of root tissues. In this project, we investigate mechanisms underlying root accommodation of naturally occurring fungal endophytes in Arabidopsis. We will build on studies which show that Arabidopsis root interactions with the mutualist fungus Serendipita indica (Si) and selected root-associated bacteria can protect the plant from invasion by a fungal pathogen. We will probe at a genetic, biochemical and spatio-temporal level whether certain immunity triggers and induced defense pathways impact Si colonization and whether outcomes for Si and the plant are altered in a bacterial community context. In particular, we will extend an analysis of root-secreted coumarins and, using coumarin-inducing rhizobacteria, immune elicitors and a set of Arabidopsis coumarin pathway mutants and root cell reporter lines, critically test their role in shaping plant root - fungal endophyte interactions.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
