Research

ENDOPHYTE CULTURE COLLECTION & FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION

Fungal Endophytes (fungi living inside plant tissues without causing visible symptoms) are essential partners of plants, helping their hosts respond and adapt to changing environmental conditions. While next-generation sequencing and other *-omics* technologies have revolutionized our understanding of these diverse microbial communities, translating this knowledge into practical applications for conservation, restoration, and sustainable agriculture requires more than DNA sequences alone. It also requires living fungal isolates whose functions can be experimentally tested and harnessed.

To bridge this gap, the isolation of fungi from healthy plant tissues is a central component of our research program. By establishing pure cultures, we can investigate the functional traits of individual fungal species, including their ability to utilize different resources, tolerate environmental stress, and potentially promote plant health. For many of our isolates, these functional assays are quantified and visualized, providing insights into the ecological roles of fungal symbionts and identifying candidates for future applications in ecosystem restoration and sustainable crop production.

PLANT-MICROBE INTERACTIONS

Plant– microbe interactions are highly context dependent, varying with both the identities of the plant and microbial (fungal or bacterial) partners as well as the surrounding abiotic and biotic environment. To better understand the factors that govern the outcomes of these interactions, we conduct a series of controlled experiments that integrate greenhouse and laboratory approaches.

PLANT-SOIL FEEDBACK

One line of research uses growth chamber experiments with plants grown in sterilized or inoculated soils to investigate how soil microbial communities shaped by past environmental stressors and plant diversity influence subsequent plant performance and plant–soil feedbacks. These experiments provide insights into the legacy effects of environmental change on plant–microbe interactions.

PLANT–FUNGAL INTERACTION ASSAYS

In complementary plate-based assays, fungal isolates representing different species and functional traits are evaluated for their ability to promote or inhibit plant growth, tolerate environmental stress, and compete with other microorganisms. Together, these experiments allow us to identify the ecological mechanisms underlying plant–fungal interactions and assess their potential applications in conservation, ecosystem restoration, and sustainable agriculture.

PLANT–FUNGAL INTERACTIONS IN NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS

While controlled laboratory and greenhouse experiments allow us to isolate specific mechanisms underlying plant–fungal interactions, it is equally important to evaluate these processes under natural conditions. To bridge this gap, we conduct field experiments in non-controlled environments that more closely reflect the complex conditions plants experience in nature. These studies enable us to assess how plant–fungal interactions unfold in real-world settings, where multiple biotic and abiotic factors interact simultaneously, and to determine whether patterns observed under controlled conditions translate to natural ecosystems.

PLANT MICROBIAL DIVERSITY, COMMUNITY COMPOSITION & ASSEMBLY

Plants host diverse communities of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that range from beneficial mutualists to harmful pathogens. We investigate how environmental conditions, host traits, and ecological processes shape microbial diversity, community composition, and assembly across natural and managed ecosystems. By integrating field surveys, DNA sequencing, and ecological analyses, our research aims to understand the mechanisms governing plant-associated microbial communities and their consequences for plant health, ecosystem functioning, conservation, and sustainable agriculture.

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