Climate-resilient crops with improved phosphorus efficiency through beneficial fungal interactions

• Applicants: Dr. Martina Ried; Professor Dr. Gabriel Schaaf; Professor Matthias Wissuwa, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Peng Yu
• Subject Area: Organismic Interactions, Chemical Ecology and Microbiomes of Plant Systems
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 552843484

In many parts of the world, excessive use of phosphorus (P) fertilizers in agricultural soils has led to large-scale contamination of the environment. On the other hand, in other areas, P deficient soils and poor access to fertilizers presents a major constraint on crop production. Warmer, drier conditions resulting from climate change and depletion of non-renewable reserves of high-grade phosphate rock will only exacerbate these problems as low soil moisture reduces plant-availability of P, increasing demand for P fertilizers, while prices rise and equitable access falls. In natural systems, the majority of plants rely on root symbioses with mutualistic mycorrhizal fungi for efficient P uptake. These interactions were instrumental to the establishment of the first land plants over 450-million years ago, and they remain active in major crop species. However, the delicate balance between plant and fungal partner is far from optimized for the environment of today’s intensive agricultural systems. In this proposal, we will characterize plant genetic mechanisms that coordinate the interaction of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi with plant P and water status, the development of the root system and the broader community of soil microbes. Working from the scale of the single gene to field evaluation, we will define a framework for rational optimization of plant-mycorrhizal symbioses for more efficient, resilient and sustainable P use in agriculture. Focusing on the two major cereal crops, maize and rice, our specific objectives are to: 1. Understand how alterations in plant P sensing and signaling affect mycorrhizal colonization and responses to plant P status.2. Quantify the relative contributions of root traits vs mycorrhizae and rhizosphere processes for P efficiency with and without water stress. 3. Corroborate the findings under field conditions in relevant environments.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: United Kingdom, USA
• Partner Organisation: Biotechnology und Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC); National Science Foundation (NSF)
• Cooperation Partners: Professor Guy Kirk, Ph.D.; Dr. Amy Marshall-Colón; Professorin Dr. Uta Paszkowski; Professor Dr. Ruairidh Sawers
• Co-Investigator: Dr. Johannes Postma