Identification and Characterization of Beneficial Plant Root-Associated Microbes

Project Lead

Zayda Morales Moreira, Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Funding

Center for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council; UBC Faculty of Land and Food Systems

About the Project

This project studies how beneficial bacteria can improve crop yields, disease resistance, and help crops adapt to climate change. Just like the microbes in our gut that help us digest our food, plants use microbes to get the most from the soil they grow in. Their plot at the UBC Farm looks at a model mustard plant, Arabidopsis (a small weedy plant with tiny white flowers), that grows well in disturbed soils.

The goal of this work is to understand the genetic basis of plant-microbiome interactions. At this stage, the work is basic research working primarily with a wild plant (Arabidopsis). However, the lab also tests all of their findings on crops. The long-term goal is to apply these findings to develop better biopesticides and biofertilizers.

External Links and Publications

Morales Moreira, Z., Chen, M.Y., Yanez Ortuno, D. and Haney, C.H.* (2022). Engineering plant microbiomes by integrating eco-evolutionary principles into current manipulation strategies. Current Opinion in Plant Biology.doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2022.102316

Geissmann, Q., Abram, P. K., Wu., D., Haney, C. H., Carrillo, J. Sticky Pi, a high-frequency smart trap to study insect circadian activity under natural conditions. (2022). Plos Biology. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001689

Wang, N. R., Wiesmann, C. L., Melnyk R. A., Hossain, S.S., Chi, M. H., Martens, K., Craven, K., and Haney C.H.* (2022). Commensal Pseudomonas fluorescens strains protect Arabidopsis from closely-related Pseudomonas pathogens in a colonization-dependent manner. mBio. doi.org/10.1128/mbio.02892-21

Song, Y., Wilson, A., Zhang, X.C., Thoms, D., Sohrabi, R., Song, S., Geissmann, Q., Liu, Y., Walgren, L., He, S.Y. and Haney, C.H.* (2021). FERONIA restricts Pseudomonas in the rhizosphere microbiome via regulation of reactive oxygen species. Nature Plants. dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41477-021-00914-0    

Banner Photo credit: Melissa Chen