Project R-9902

Characterisation of Trifolium repens seed microbiome from zinc and lead polluted mine waste heaps of different age (Research)

To avoid toxic effects of metals, different strategies have been developed to clean-up the environment. The use of living organisms, i.e. microbes associated with plants (phytoremediation) is an attractive and environmentally friendly approach. However, there still are some substantial limitations such as the low biomass production of metal hyperaccumulators and hence long duration of the phytoextraction process. Seed endophytes, which can be transferred between subsequent generations, are of great importance for their host plants. Because of different adaptation rates of plants to cope with heavy metal stress toxicity over one or several generations, it is crucial to know the influence of the factor time on the plant seed microbiome for a better understanding of the mechanisms of phytoremediation. Zinc and lead post-mining deposits located in Poland are inhabited by natural flora. Because of their anthropogenic origin they vary in age. Therefore, the general purpose of the present study is to examine the effects of the age of the wastes in shaping the biodiversity and functional properties of the seed microbiome of Trifolium repens collected from three Zn-Pb waste heaps (of different age) in Poland.

01 July 2019 - 31 August 2020