Tanja Kostic
Role in Phytobiomes Alliance
Coordinating Committee, EU project MICROBE
Affiliation
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology
Position
Head of Competence Unit, Bioresources
Current Phytobiomes-related Projects
- MICROBE project (MICRObiome Biobanking (RI) Enabler)
Optimised methodologies for preservation of microbiomes: maintaining composition and functionality
Microbiomes are communities of microorganisms that include bacteria, archaea, protists, fungi and microalgae, their structural elements, metabolites, signal molecules, mobile genetic elements and surrounding environmental conditions. They are essential for maintaining ecosystems and the health of plants, animals and humans. The EU-funded MICROBE project will cooperate with research infrastructures for the creation and development of methodologies and technologies to enable access to microbiome samples and associated data. The project objectives include technical solutions for microbiome preservation, propagation and functionality assessment, as well as data infrastructures. In addition, MICROBE will address issues associated with standardisation, ethical and legal requirements, and business opportunities.