Bacterial consortia for biocontrol in agriculture

Topic description

Developing and understanding biocontrol bacterial consortia to better protect agricultural crops and reduce the use of synthetic pesticides in the field, using advanced techniques in microbiology, molecular biology, and bioinformatics.

THE PROJECT

This project aims to explore biocontrol bacterial consortia as alternatives to synthetic pesticides, in order to improve the environmental footprint of agriculture. It lies at the intersection of microbiology, plant biology, and ecology. You will delve into the interactions between biocontrol bacteria that, when assembled into consortia, can lead to better plant protection. The project will focus on soybean white mold (also called stem rot), caused by the pathogenic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, which leads to major crop l...