We are interested in helping rice accommodate these helpful bacteria using genetic engineering technology. Extending the range of crops able to fix nitrogen would be revolutionary for environmentally friendly, sustainable agriculture by massively reducing the carbon footprint of agriculture. This is the long-term aspiration in my research.
In the short term, I will collaborate with Dr.Giles Oldroyd and Jeremy Murray (John Innes Centre), whose research programs focus on nodule organogenesis and rhizobial infection respectively. Through collaborations we have obtained several mutants defective in nitrogen fixation process which may be associated with rhizobial invasion and symbiosome development, but showed wild-type responses to mycorrhizal fungi infection. By studying the later stages of nodule development we will acquire knowledge that will help us to understand how helpful bacteria survive and fix nitrogen in a nodule.
Rice model plant