engleski

Exploring climate change feedbacks of the extreme weather events on the interaction between rhizosphere microbiota and plants

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our times, with agricultural sector predicted to beamong those mostly affected. It is projected that climate variability will cause a substantial effect on agroecosystem functioning with measurable consequences on agricultural production and food security. Project “Exploring adaptation potential of rhizosphere microbiota to climate change: towards sustainable agriculture in the future (PERSPIRE)”, funded by the European Regional Development Fund(ERDF), aims to study the effects of the extreme weather events, already being experienced as a consequence of climate variability, on the complex interaction between rhizosphere microbiota and plant holobiont. Rhizosphere microbiota accomplish various functions that contribute a wide range of essential services by acting as the primary driving agents of nutrient cycles, regulating dynamics of soil organic matter, soil carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emission, degrading pollutants, modifying soil physical properties and water regimes therefore indirectly being responsible for the health, growth, development and productivity of the plants. In the same time, due to unpredictable nature of the extreme weather events, studies of their impacts on the climate-ecosystem feedbacks are limited, with almost nothing known of the way in which extreme weather affects the rhizosphere microbiota. In view of a changing climate, not only crop yields, but also agricultural practices, including crop protection, is expected to be deeply affected. Combination of increased volatilization and accelerated degradation under climate change scenario, both strongly affected by a high moisture content, elevated temperatures and direct exposure to sunlight, is expected to reduce environmental concentrations of both synthetic and natural active ingredients. In such “new” condition pesticides are presumed to be used in higher amounts, doses, frequencies and different varieties or types of productsapplied. Climate change will therefore surely change what we currently know about the behaviour of pesticides in soils as well as their effect on microbiota. As intense rainfall events will in many cases result in soil saturation/hypoxic or anoxic conditions both microbiota, plant as well as pesticide behaviour is expected to be greatly affected. To tackle the uncertainty of the climate change effects on the agroecosystems, within the project PERSPIRE, we will settle a microcosm experiment in which selected model plant Brassica oleracea var. viridis (collards) will be grown in conditions mimicking expected climate change scenario: (1) exposing soil and holobiont to repetitive short-term flooding events (48h) and (2) additions of high amounts of herbicide pendimethaline [N-(1- ethylpropyl)-3, 4-dimethyl-2, 6- dinitrobenzenamine] to soil. Complex interactions between rhizosphere microbiota and plant holobiont in these “new” climate-change driven conditions will be studied on different levels: (i) within the rhizosphere microbiota (changes in the structure, function and activity), (ii) within the plant (changes in physiology, productivity and growth), (iii) within soil compartment (changes in plant- nutrient capacity and pesticide behaviour). Studying the responses of the rhizosphere microbiota and plants in experiments mimicking expected climate change scenarios is necessary not only to better understand effects of climate change on the agricultural sector but also to explore resilience and recovery capacity of the plants under expected climate change.

climate change ; extreme weather ; interaction ; rhizosphere microbiota ; plants

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