Webinar: Dissecting microbiome-dependent crop traits: From reductionist models to field-scale complexity

Understanding how microbiomes influence plant health and productivity is crucial for developing sustainable agricultural management strategies. However, the complexity and context-dependency of microbial effects on plant traits present significant challenges for researchers and product developers. This webinar highlights two contrasting yet complementary approaches to microbiome research: reductionist studies using synthetic microbial communities and field-based investigations in complex agricultural systems. The first talk examines how simplified systems can reveal fundamental mechanisms of microbe-host interactions. Using metaproteomics, Dr. Manuel Kleiner’s lab studies the metabolic and physiological adaptations of seven maize root-associated bacterial species grown in vitro and in planta, uncovering both conserved and species-specific functions that drive microbial niche specialization in the root environment. The second talk, presented by Dr. Onyemaechi Henry Obiazikwor, shifts to the complexities of real-world field conditions, showcasing how commercially available biological products, including live microbes, organic acids, and fish-seaweed fertilizer, influence tomato crop yield and soil microbiomes. These field trials highlight the challenges of translating lab-based research into agricultural practice and the importance of understanding seasonal and farm environmental variability. Together, these talks provide a unique perspective on how different experimental scales and approaches can be leveraged to understand and utilize the plant microbiome for enhancing crop production. June 09, 2025 News, Webinar

Webinar: Designing biosensors to inform ecosystem engineering

An effective strategy to enhance the resilience and productivity of biofeedstocks is to engineer plant-associated microbiomes. One example of microbiome manipulation is the use of biofertilizers and biopesticides containing plant growth-promoting microbes to improve plant health and pest resistance. However, these introduced microbes often fail to establish, persist, and consistently deliver benefits under varying environmental conditions. To address these challenges, we are developing novel biosensors to provide real-time measurements of microbial persistence and metabolic activity in complex environments. Here, we describe the development of Bacillus velezensis as a biosensor to support microbiome engineering in the plant rhizosphere. Specifically, we are engineering a gas-based biosensor that produces an indicator gas detectable by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, enabling real-time, non-disruptive monitoring of microbial activity in soils from laboratory to greenhouse scales. We are utilizing a constitutive version of this gas biosensor to investigate how genetic traits influence B. velezensis survival under abiotic and biotic stress conditions, as well as inducible versions to assess the bioavailability of root exudates and their roles in plant-microbe interactions. Overall, these technical advancements will enable critical in situ monitoring of microbial activity, facilitating the identification of genetic modifications that can predictably and safely improve the performance of engineered plant biostimulants. June 06, 2025 News, Webinar

Webinar: 100 Years of Collecting Biological Materials: The Diversity of the ATCC® Collection

For more than 100 years, ATCC® has been supplying the global scientific community with authenticated, high-quality biological resources and standards that support research with the power to transform lives. At its inception in the 1920s, ATCC® was regarded as simply a microbial culture collection—a repository of microorganisms that scientists could draw from to conduct their research to make new discoveries. Today, ATCC® provides the world’s leading scientists with the largest and most diverse collection of biological materials, including microbe products, cell products, molecular genomics tools, and nucleic acids. ATCC® also serves as both a type strain and patent depository. Our vast collection boasts more than 70,000 microbes and 4,000 eukaryotic cell lines used in various industrial applications, and we are continuing to expand. In this presentation, I will highlight the diversity and importance of the collection built over the last 100 years. I will also describe the tools used to authenticate the materials and provide examples of how this collection can be used as a valuable resource for the present and future generations of scientists. June 04, 2025 News, Webinar

Phytobiomes Alliance Newsletter – May 2025

In this issue, we are sharing updates from Alliance projects, news from our working groups, and upcoming events and webinars.... May 28, 2025 News, Newsletter