Scientific content of the IMPACT project

• Monitoring the population dynamics of introduced strains and specific microorganisms.

• Effect of introduced genetically-modified bacteria on the microbial community, e.g. total soil biomass.

• Enumeration/persistence of introduced wild-type and genetically-modified bacteria and assessment of their effect on closely-related resident microorganisms.

• Effect of introduced genetically-modified bacteria on beneficial microbial groups in the rhizosphere.

  • Interactions between microbial inoculants and beneficial soil microorganisms.

  • Effects of microbial inoculants on mycorrhizae.

  • Interactions in the rhizosphere.

  • Effect of microbial inoculants on beneficial bacteria.

• Effect of introduced wild-type and genetically-modified bacteria on deleterious rhizosphere groups, e.g. pathogenic fungi and bacteria.

• Effect of introduced wild-type and genetically-modified bacteria on subsequent introduction of a different crop.

• Enzymatic activities involved in overall soil fertility: a biochemical indicator to monitor perturbations caused by the introduction of wild-type and genetically-modified bacteria into the rhizosphere of crop plants.

  • Importance of enzymes in soil.

  • New methods for enzymatic activity determinations.

• Development of novel identification methods for microorganisms based on molecular approaches such as gene probes and PCR.

  • Molecular identification of soil microorganisms.

  • New molecular techniques to characterise soil microorganisms.

  • Automation and computer-aided characterisation of soil microorganisms.

• Design and construction of inoculant strains for monitoring purposes.

  • Tagging strains for monitoring purposes.

• Biological systems for the containment of genetically-modified bacteria.

  • Biological containment systems for improved safety.

  • Development and testing of containment systems for modified inoculants.

• Gene transfer: effect of transfer of recombinant genes to the resident soil microbiota.

Return to IMPACT Project Page