Beneficial plant-microbe interaction

Microorganisms emit compounds that enhance photosynthesis and nutrient uptake, and confer resistance to abiotic stresses and pathogens, thereby boosting plant growth and yield. Many of these compounds are volatiles. Using genetic engineering and “omics” techniques to study transcriptomes, proteomes, redox-proteomes, metabolomes, hormonomes and phenomes, our group is interested in (i) identifying microbial-based biostimulants, and (ii) getting a holistic view on the complex regulatory biochemical, molecular and cell biological mechanisms involved in the response of plants and microorganisms to these compounds. To investigate the basic mechanisms involved in the plant response to microbial compounds, we use the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. To characterize the response of crops of agronomic interest to these compounds, we work with tomato plants