ARC DE18 - Infrastructure - Capturing highly beneficial and persistent legume symbionts

This project aims to investigate impacts of climate change on the survival of symbiotic soil bacteria and the nutritional benefits they provide plants, using cutting edge molecular technology. This project will generate new knowledge about the process of adaptation in symbiotic bacteria, by measuring genomic changes impacting their contributions to plant growth. Expected outcomes of this project include enhanced capacity to design ecological or genetic manipulations of soil bacteria to augment plant survival and health. Anticipated benefits include enhanced woodland restoration in a biodiversity hotspot, options to mitigate habitat damage from climate change, and strategies to increase agricultural productivity with less fertiliser.