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Root structure and soil texture dependent microbial self-management in the rhizospere and specific cells of the endorhizosphere of corn
Project
Project code: DFG-403671039
Contract period: 01.01.2018
- 31.12.2020
Purpose of research: Basic research
The interaction of roots and microbial communities in the rhizosphere and the endorhizosphere regulates plant growth by capturing soil resources and contributes to plant health by suppressing pathogens or enhancing disease resistance.The overall goal of this project is to better understand how the structure of maize roots, their exudates and soil texture shape the self-organization of bacterial and fungal microbiomes in the rhizosphere and endorhizosphere.To study the role of root structure in root-microbiome interaction, all experiments will include two maize mutants which we previously isolated. The mutant roothairless 3 (rth3) does not form root hairs while the mutant lateral rootless 1 (lrt1) does not initiate lateral roots. To investigate the influence of soil texture on root-microbe interaction, all plants will be grown in silt loam and loamy sand. Recently we demonstrated root-type-specific differences in microbial colonization. Therefore, it is instrumental to study different maize root types separately. We will therefore focus in this proposal on maize primary roots.In a first experiment we will study the role of root structure and soil texture in the interactions of maize primary roots and their exudates with the microbiome in the rhizosphere. To this end we will sequence the transcriptomes of primary roots of the different genotypes grown in distinct soil textures and determine the metabolomes of their root exudates. In parallel, we will determine the taxonomic composition of the microbiomes in their rhizosphere. Finally, we will construct network inferences to study how the different components of this biological system influence each other and drive self-organization in the rhizosphere. In a second experiment, we will survey the role of root structure and soil texture in the interaction of specific root-tissues with their microbiomes in the endorhizosphere. To this end, primary roots of the different genotypes grown in distinct soil textures will be separated into epidermis, cortex and stele by laser capture microdissection. These three root compartments will then be subjected to RNA-seq. Moreover, the taxonomic composition of the microbiomes in the endorhizosphere of these three compartments will be determined to test the hypothesis that functionally distinct root-tissues attract diverse endophytic microbial communities from the rhizosphere. Network inferences will be constructed to demonstrate that microbial communities inhabiting the stele, cortex and epidermis are functionally synchronized with their corresponding co-expressed transcriptomic modules. Finally, if time permits, transcriptome and microbiome data obtained in the endorhizosphere will be in situ validated by hybridization and cellular imaging techniques.
Section overview
Subjects
- Plant Nutrition
- Soil science
