Institut für Pflanzenschutz in Obst- und Weinbau
The project aims to characterize the composition and functional biodiversity of microbiomes in various habitats of fruit crops and viticulture (including endophytes, soil, rhizosphere, phyllosphere). To this end, metabarcoding methods based on high-throughput sequencing (HTS) are being developed, adapted, and systematically evaluated to enable precise analyses of different sample types and target organisms. A central focus is on the entire methodological process chain, from standardized sampling and preparation to sequencing, bioinformatic processing, and statistical evaluation of the data. Not only is the species spectrum recorded and relatively quantified, but approaches are also being explored to draw conclusions about the functional biodiversity of the microbiomes from the data obtained. This enables a deeper understanding of the ecological dynamics and interactions in the habitats under investigation and thus contributes to the development of more sustainable management of natural regulatory mechanisms in fruit crops and viticulture.
Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity
