Deciphering the molecular bases of phosphorus availability in the plant growth-promoting bacterium Pantoea agglomerans 33.1

• Grant number: 25/19882-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: December 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2030
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Genetics - Molecular Genetics and Genetics of Microorganisms
• Principal Investigator: Maria Carolina Quecine Verdi
• Grantee: Renan Fantine
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 23/11328-9 - Microorganisms associated with alternative sources of phosphates for greater phosphorus use efficiency by crops, AP.R

Abstract

One of the main challenges of modern agriculture is to increase productivity without expanding cultivated land and while reducing input use, in the face of population growth and increasing pressure on natural resources. By other hand, phosphorus (P) is an essential for plant development, but a large portion of the P present in the soil is in forms unavailable to plants, making phosphate fertilization necessary-a practice that is both financially and environmentally costly. Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria (PGPB) have emerged as a promising alternative, particularly due to their ability to enhance P availability in the soil. Pantoea agglomerans 33.1 is a well-characterized PGPB with multiple growth-promotion mechanisms, notably through phosphate solubilization and mineralization. However, the regulatory mechanisms controlling these processes remain poorly understood. Given the advances in omics technologies (transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics), the potential of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing and the research group's expertise, this project aims to integratively investigate the molecular and metabolic regulation of P availability by P. agglomerans 33.1. The research will be carried out across three fronts: i) identification of key genes and potential regulatory networks associated with P availability; ii) functional validation using CRISPR-Cas9; and iii) investigation of key genes and potential novel regulons involved. The expected outcome is to generate novel insights to guide the engineering of more efficient microorganisms for sustainable agricultural systems.