This group works mainly on Papyrology and Diplomatics. We pay special attention to the edition, analysis, and study of Ancient and Medieval texts. However, our main and distinctive focus lays on the holistic study on the materiality of these crucial “residues” preserved in Mediterranean societies. In this way, we are especially interested in the analysis of the writing materials and their production, but also on the process of writing, reading and transmitting their contents.

HUMANE starts from a critical positioning towards the models of knowledge prevailing in Social Sciences research and the need to generate a research truly transdisciplinary that goes beyond the limitations of the single academic disciplines and historical trajectories. HUMANE mission is the development of an innovative theoretical-methodological framework for the study of social dynamics in a long-term perspective and within an environmental framework.

The keywords that best describe the group are: identity, memory, pluriculturality, migration, globalization, gender, body, ontologies and posthumanism. This research group focus on the issues of collective identities and multiculturalism as they manifest in current societies. As far as this subject is concerned, the present and powerful globalization processes offer to the researchers a huge field of observation and analysis.

The group investigates soil microbiology from a systems biology perspective. Current research lines involve the study of the structure, function, plasticity, dinamics and evolution of nitrogen-fixing symbiotic bacterial genomes as well as of metagenomes of the plants rhizosphere from agro-forestry ecosystems. Experimental approaches combine clasical microbiology, biochemistry and molecular-genetics methods with cutting edge next generation deep-sequencing technologies.

Molecular mechanisms driving mutualistic and pathogenic plant-bacteria interactions. Biotechnological solutions for sustainable agriculture and environment.

The group investigates, at cell and molecular levels, the role of antioxidants, free radicals and nitric oxide in the physiology of horticultural species (pepper, tomato, olive, pea, etc.) for the development of biotechnological tools/strategies which allow a better exploitation of the nutritional features of these crops.

One research line studies the redox signalling in chloroplasts and how it regulates the photosynthetic efficiency and the carbohydrate metabolism through reverse genetics analyses and by using biochemical, molecular and microscopy techniques, amongst others. Other research line investigates the impact of biotic and abiotic stress in the plant metabolism by biochemical, molecular, proteomic and imaging techniques, mainly those related to plant phenotyping.

Biochemistry and molecular biology of aquaporins and surrounding lipids. Nutritional stress adaptation and industrial applications.

Agronomic, physiological and molecular aspects of plant mineral nutrition. Interaction with abiotic stresses

It is assumed that SOIL is the base for food production its protection being consequently required. However, soils are degraded due to adverse environmental conditions, population pressure and / or policies not always appropriate. Land degradation results in a loss of organic matter and thus their fertility and productivity.