Examining the mechanisms underlying the abiotic stress tolerance of the wild tomato species Solanum pennellii

• Applicants: Professor Alisdair Fernie, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Björn Usadel
• Subject Area: Plant Genetics and Genomics ; Plant Biochemistry and Biophysics
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 452682775

Wild tomato species are characterized by a remarkable abiotic stress tolerance. At least in Solanum pennellii this is likely an adaptation to its natural relatively harsh habitat. Interestingly, there seems to be a positive correlation between the stress tolerance of Solanum pennellii and the insertion of transposable elements. There is also evidence for a metabolic core stress response not only in tomatoes, which may lead to an improved stress response. In this project, almost 50 different Solanum pennellii lines in the collection of the "Tomato Genetic Resource Center" will first be investigated for an improved salt and drought stress response and a pan(epi)genome of these lines will be generated. Selected lines will then be analyzed in detail using a systems biology approach to find the molecular relationship of the stress response and especially the role of the transposons. In a complementary approach, selected cultivated tomato lines harboring a small part of the S. pennellii genome will be used to find genes/transposons that mediate stress response. Finally, first validation experiments with the identified genes will be performed.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants