Using beneficial microbes to mitigate the effects of climate change on plant nutrition, resistance to insects, and drought

Climate change has major present-day and anticipated consequences for Canadian and global food security. Increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) levels can lead to decreased plant nutritional quality: more fixed carbon and sugar means that plants have less protein and micronutrients per gram. Additionally, increased CO2 levels can exacerbate insect pests on crops because elevated CO2 interferes with plant signalling and suppresses plants’ ability to respond to stressors. Below ground, plant roots associate with complex communities of microbes (called their microbiome) that can promote growth and protect plants from insect pests. Individual microbes can positively affect plant traits that are negatively impacted by climate change including plant pest resistance, food quality and drought tolerance. The goal of this research is to determine whether beneficial microbes can directly mitigate the detrimental effects of climate change on plant nutrition, resistance to insects, and to drought under elevated CO2. TO BE CONT’D

Faculty Supervisor:

Cara Haney;Juli Carrillo

Student:

Yi Song;Quentin Geissmann;David Thoms;Jamie Cook;Nicole Yang;Zhexian (Frank) Liu

Partner:

Terramera Inc

Discipline:

Biology

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

University of British Columbia