Joint project

Funder: Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space, former: Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Period: 2011-2014

URI: https://www.pflanzenforschung.de/de/forschung-plant-2030/projekte/68/detail

Detailed description: 
The focus of this project is on the investigation of the GRAMINEOUS ROOT. Although plant roots are surrounded by a biologically active zone rich in microorganisms, below-ground root-microbe interactions are poorly understood. The consortium combines breeding, plant pathological and physiological expertise enabling to address important questions of root stress biology with a current focal point on enhancing root disease resistance and salt tolerance. The consortium centers on complementary research strategies to identify and exploit genes that protect roots from biotic and abiotic stresses. Given the high risk of emerging diseases due to atmospheric and soil temperature changes, one key issue of the proposal is the question on how increasing abiotic stress may impinge on plant performance against emerging root pathogens. The specific goals of this proposal are: (1) Isolation of genes conferring broad resistance to root diseases. (2) Identification of genes conferring improved salt tolerance. (3) Elucidation of effects from saline soils on pathogen resistance mechanisms to identify genes that are protective in combined stress situations. Promising genotypes will be validated in seedling tests. Genotypes generated by the university partners will be processed by breeding company partners to generated DH lines and backcrosses with elite high performance plant material.