The Castrillo’s lab debut paper now @ScienceMagazine We show that coordination between root endodermis and root microbiome optimizes the shoot ionome allowing the plant to survive nutritional stresses. A story of microbiome-ABA-suberin-ionome! 1/10 https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/11/18/science.abd0695

First, by profiling the microbiome of 19 mutants and transgenic lines grown in natural soil and 8 lines in a SynCom system, we found that the genes controlling the plant’s root diffusion barrier function also strongly influence the root microbiome assembly. 2/10

Then, we measured the shoot ionome of these 19 plant genotypes and found a significant correlation between the ionomic profiles and the microbiome assembly patterns. This hinted us about an interplay between the root microbiota, the root diffusion barriers and the ionome. 3/10

Next, by analyzing plants in mono-association with 416 plant-associated isolates, we found that the microbiome influences the root diffusion barrier function. Bacteria can modify Casparian strip formation and suberin deposition independently of affecting plant development. 4/10

We found that changes in suberization induced by bacteria covered a wide range, from over deposition to extreme inhibition of its accumulation, and that these changes correlated with the concentration of mineral nutrients pointing to shared regulatory mechanisms among them. 5/10

Then, by growing plants axenically or with a SynCom across distinct nutritional stresses allowed us to find that the microbiome consistently modifies suberin plasticity. This effect has consequences for mineral nutrient balance and plant tolerance to nutritional stresses. 6/10

Later, utilizing suberin defective lines we showed that the SynCom effect on the plant ionome was linked to root suberization thus indicating that microbiome-mediated suberin deposition optimizes a sector of the shoot ionome supporting plant acclimation to nutrient stresses.7/10

Finally, utilizing a combination of RNA-Seq, plant mutants and GFP-marker lines we established that the microbiome modulates the plants suberin deposition through abscisic acid response repression and that this effect represents an uncharacterized suberin regulatory pathway. 8/10

In terms of applied science, this discovery opens the possibility to develop microbial-based strategies to control suberization of plant roots opening opportunities to design more resilient crops, new biofortification strategies, and carbon-sequestration approaches! 9/10

I am very grateful to have been able to contribute to this story. I would like to thank all the great team of scientists @UoNFutureFood @GuilhemReyt and the whole team! Personally, I am thankful for the support of my mentors, my family and specially my dear friend Gabi Castrillo!