WHEATSHIELD

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Microbial partners
for resilient wheat.

WHEATSHIELD investigates whether beneficial bacteria associated with wheat roots can help plants cope with drought. We connect variation among wheat genotypes with their rhizosphere microbiomes, identify candidate rhizobacteria and test their effects in controlled experiments.

The aim is to move from associations between microbes and drought responses to experimental evidence about the organisms and mechanisms involved. This provides a foundation for microbiome-assisted approaches to crop resilience.

ACTIVITIES & EXPECTED OUTPUTS

Field questions.
Experimental follow-through.

The project combines field and pot experiments, microbiome sequencing, plant phenotyping, microbial cultivation and inoculation assays. The field programme compares wheat accessions under contrasting water regimes.

Expected outputs

• Microbiome profiles linked with wheat genotype and drought responses.
• A collection of characterised candidate rhizobacteria.
• Experimental evidence on candidate strains and plant responses to water stress.
• Research publications and resources to support further microbiome-based crop research.

These are intended project outputs. Project-specific publications and public resources will be linked here as they become available.

RESEARCH TEAM

Expertise across
plants and microbes.

The research connects expertise at the Agricultural Institute of Slovenia (KIS), the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences of the University of Maribor (FKBV) and the National Laboratory of Health, Environment and Food (NLZOH).

Collaborators include Primož Titan, Manfred Jakop, Silva Grobelnik Mlakar and Maja Rupnik.