Evolutionary adaptation to local soil pH in Arabidopsis halleri (A09)

Subject Area Plant Physiology
Term since 2022
Project identifier Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 456082119
 

Project Description

Calcareous soils are characterized by high, alkaline pH levels and low availabilities of iron, a crucial nutrient in plants. Natural populations of the long-lived and stress-tolerant Arabidopsis halleri are well known for their ability to accumulate and tolerate high concentrations of heavy metals that can interfere with iron nutrition, but these populations also inhabit exceptionally diverse soils spanning a wide range of pH values. Our central objective is to decipher the molecular physiological basis of how different populations of the species A. halleri can inhabit soils with contrasting pH and thus varying availability of iron and other minerals.
DFG Programme CRC/Transregios
Subproject of TRR 341:  Plant Ecological Genetics
Applicant Institution Universität zu Köln
Project Head Professorin Dr. Ute Krämer, since 7/2022