Projects
Living plants in microbial fuel cells for clean, renewable, sustainable, efficient, in-situ bioenergy production Ghent University
Abstract (max. 60 woorden): (Sediment)microbial fuel cells are able to produce electricity by oxidation of organic substances. This technology is enhanced by adding plants. They provide continuous organic substances, by rhizodeposition, derived from the greenhouse gas CO2 and sunlight. Focus will be on anodic conversion efficiencies, low-tech design, molecular characterization (and possibly control) of the rhizosphere microbiology. Soil ...
Linking living plant traits to soil biogeochemical functions in ecosystem patches under different land using regimes using an isotope-based assessment 'Acronym: PlaBioF) Ghent University
Understanding how human-induced vegetation shifts modify N cycling is essential. In this study, land use patches under different land management will be characterized according to their plant functional diversity. Living plant effects on gross N cycling and microbial community structure will be determined. Links between plant functional diversity and biogeochemical ecosystem functioning will be investigated.
A two step bioreactor-based strategy for the manufacturing of patterned tissue structures: designing living implants. KU Leuven
Current tissue engineering strategies based on manual trial and error approaches mostly give limited and unpredictable in vitro and also in vivo outcomes. Recently a biomimetic methodology for in vitro process design was described, inspired by in vivo developmental stages of tissue formation. This strategy suggests a gradual and concerted progression of chondrocyte cell assembly and condensation followed by growth and differentiation, leading ...
Factors driving alien plant invasions in mountain regions. University of Antwerp
Deficiency and toxicity of micronutrients (copper and zinc): the reducing potential as a driving force in plant responses (Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica oleracea) Hasselt University
Decamouflaging plant blindness. Use of plants in contemporary art to reclaim histories of the weak. KU Leuven
Plants tend to be overlooked by humans in general. The term 'plant blindness' - inability to notice plants unless they become resources useful for people: medicines, food, textiles etc. - was coined by botanist James H. Wandersee and biologist Elisabeth E. Schussler, but a similar mechanism was also recognized in traditional art history. According to art historian Giovani Aloi, plants either serve as a backdrop lacking individual ...
Bacterial root endophytes to protect plants against cold temperatures Ghent University
Like animals, plants are known to host a community of endophytic microorganisms that live inside
their tissues, without causing harm. Starting from the observation that some plants seem to tolerate
winter cold quite well, we intend to study the contribution that endophytic bacteria in roots make
to plant cold tolerance. By looking directly at the DNA of the endophytes without cultivating them,
we will ...
Interaction between Pseudomonas protegens and Sarocladium oryzae in rice plants with sheath rot Ghent University
Rice is the daily food for more than half of the world's population. This crop is threatened by various diseases, including rice sheath rot which results in rotting of the rice sheath and sterility of the resulting grains. The major pathogen causing this disease is a fungus, called Sarocladium oryzae. This fungus produces two toxic compounds, helvolic acid and cerulenin. Helvolic acid is not only toxic for the plant, but also for other ...
Functional analysis of the role of post-translational modifications of TPLATE Complex subunits for clathrin-mediated endocytosis in plants Ghent University
We recently identified the TPLATE complex as an essential factor for plant clathrin-mediated endocytosis. This complex is evolutionary ancient but apparently lost in ophistokonts. Aim of this project is to unravel the function of post-translational modifications occurring in the subunits of this octameric protein complex. Their functionality will be addressed by live cell imaging, mutant complementation and protein purification assays.