Responsable: Francisco Javier Ollero Márquez
Tipo de Proyecto/Ayuda: Plan Nacional del 2009
Referencia: AGL2009-13487-C04-03
Fecha de Inicio: 01-01-2010
Fecha de Finalización: 31-12-2012

Empresa/Organismo financiador/es:

• Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación

Equipo:

• Investigadores:
  • Ramón Andrés Bellogín Izquierdo
  • Miguel Cámara
  • María Teresa Cubo Sánchez
  • María del Rosario Espuny Gómez
  • Beatriz Guasch Vidal
  • Francisco Javier López Baena (alta: 11/12/2009)
  • Francisco Pérez Montaño
• Becarios:
  • Irene Jiménez Guerrero (alta: 22/03/2010)

Resumen del proyecto:

Intensive and high productive agriculture has partially achieved the objective to feed the world population. However, costs have been enormous from an economical and environmental point of view. The elevated consumption of agro-chemicals together with an intensive management has generated a strong deterioration of soils, which lose their biodiversity and structure to finally make them unproductive. Therefore, there is a general concern towards agricultural practices more respectful with the environment leading to a sustainable agriculture, reducing or controlling the use of chemical inputs (Integrated Production) or removing chemical fertilizers and pesticides as in agricultural practices related to ecological production. These agricultural practices will help to preserve soils fertility.

Results obtained in previous Projects have shown that beneficial rhizosphere and endophytic microorganisms introduced as inoculants can increase yields of rice in the Marismas del Guadalquivir, improving soil quality and preserving its own microbial biodiversity due to the use of native isolated bacteria.

One of the main objectives of this project is to use beneficial microorganisms as inoculants in sustainable agriculture and in protected areas, such as the Marismas del Guadalquivir, nearby Doñana National Park. These microorganisms have demonstrated their beneficial effects in rice plants under laboratory, greenhouse and in experimental plots. Although the strains selected as inoculants have already demonstrated, their capacity to protect systemically against salinity and to control fungal rice diseases, among other activities, the underlying mechanisms must deeply be studied. Therefore, metagenomic approaches to look for new genes involved in the induction of systemic resistance and biocontrol will be developed. Identification of new genes involved in plant-microbe interactions of strains that have demonstrated their potential agronomic use will be carried out and mutants in these genes will be constructed to demonstrate their involvement in the process.

On the other hand, with the use of micoorganisms for ecological management, we have set out the study and search of new microorganisms to be used as inoculants to overcome some of the problems that limit crop yields, such as nitrogen fertilization (use of endophytic diazotrophic microorganisms), mobilisation of nutrients from organic fertilizers allowed in these agricultural practices, and biological control of rice pests, such as aphids and chironomids.

Thus, in this project the use of beneficial microorganisms, formulated as individual or mixed inoculants, designed to solve each of the raised agronomic problems, is studied. These inoculants will contribute to carry out a comprehensive management of crops, reducing the use of agrochemicals. The general objectives of this project are based on economics and environmental problems of rice crops, as salinity and fungal diseases, which directly affect Marismas del Guadalquivir nearby the surroundings of Doñana National Park.