Molecular action of seed treatments under cold stress conditions

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Adverse growing conditions as a result of unpredictable changes in climate results in millions of dollars in crop and yield loss each year to Canadian farmers. Thus, the ability to improve crop performance under stress conditions is a major challenge. Improved plant performance, especially during the seedling stage of plant development, is often supported by the use of conventional NPK fertilizers that can have a negative impact on surrounding agricultural ecology if not applied properly. The proposed Engage project will support preliminary research and bridge relations between industry and scientists at the University of Manitoba to investigate the effect of natural products on improved plant performance from the earliest stages of seedling establishment. We will be studying the mode of action of PE1010, a micronutrient seed application, globally using a combination of RNA sequencing coupled with comprehensive bioinformatics approaches. The studies are hypothesis driven and will engage one highly qualified part-time technician and one summer student. The impact of this work has broad application to crops grown in Canada and will lead to a deeper understanding of molecular events critical for plant establishment and performance. The impact of this work is also theoretical and will lead to the development of novel tools that will likely change our understanding of plant-based chemical applications to agriculturally and economically important crops to Canada.