14CONFAP Comparative genomic and physiological analysis of C4 plant-microbe symbiosis

芒草（生长在英国）是一种含有大量碳的多年生作物，我们可以在发电站燃烧以产生能量，或生物消化以产生有用的化学物质（例如用于生产生物塑料）。甘蔗（生长在巴西）是一种非常相似的作物，因其含糖量而种植。这两种植物的根部都有一种叫做内生菌的细菌。植物与这些细菌有共生关系;一些细菌帮助植物固氮，另一些可能帮助植物耐受干旱胁迫。该项目旨在交流关于这些内生菌的知识和专业知识，包括存在哪些类型的内生菌以及它们如何发挥作用。从长远来看，这可能会导致我们能够用特定的有益细菌接种植物，从而使它们更耐干旱，并增加它们的生长。

Miscanthus (grown in the UK) is a perrenial crop containing large amounts of carbon, that we can burn in power stations to produce energy, or digest biologically to produce useful chemicals (e.g. for production of bioplastics). Sugarcane (grown in Brazil) is a very similar crop, bred for its sugar content. Both plants have bacteria called endophytes living in their roots. The plant has a symbiotic relationship with these bacteria; some of the bacteria help the plant fix nitrogen, others may help the plant tolerate drought stress. This project aims to exchange knowledge and expertise on these endophytes including what types of endophytes are present and how they function. In the long term, this could lead to us being able to innoculate plants with specific beneficial bacteria, thereby making them more tolerant to drought, and to increase their growth.