Soil bacteria plant bodyguards against fungal infections
Thursday, May 12, 2011 - 14:20
in Biology & Nature
With up to 33,000 taxa, plant roots are home to an unprecedentedly large diversity of bacteria. Some of these bacteria can function as a type of bodyguard for plants, protecting them against infection by harmful fungi. This is the result of research carried out by Wageningen UR (University & Research centre), Utrecht University, the IRS in Bergen op Zoom and the American Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, published on 5 May in Science. As these protective bacteria promote plant growth and health, knowledge about the underlying mechanisms is important for the sustainable production of food and green raw materials.