Göttinger Graduiertenzentrum für Neurowissenschaften, Biophysik und Molekulare Biowissenschaften

Dr. Sophie de Vries*

Group leader Evolution of Cyanobacterial-Plant Symbioses


  • 2011: B.Sc. Biology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Germany
  • 2013: M.Sc. Biology, Uppsala University, Sweden
  • 2016: Dr. rer. nat. Institute of Population Genetics, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Germany
  • 2017-2019: Izaak Walton Killam Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Dalhousie University, Canada
  • 2019-2021: Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Population Genetics, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Germany | Maternity leave (Dec. 2019- Mar. 2021)
  • Since 2021: Junior Group, Evolution of Cyanobacterial-Plant Symbioses, Department of Applied Bioinformatics



Major Research Interests

We are interested in what defines the outcomes of biotic interactions of plants and microbes and the evolution of these interactions. For this we use non-model systems to understand the molecular characteristics of all types of symbioses, striking a balance between non-pathogenic and pathogenic interactions. To pinpoint common denominators of interactions, we integrate our data in a microevolutionary and macroevolutionary framework.
Here, one main interest of the group are cyanobacterial symbioses in land plants and their evolution. We investigate the evolution of cyanobacterial compatibility using comparative genomic and transcriptomic approaches and test our assumptions in facultative cyanobacterial symbioses. With a focus on particular systems, including the permanent symbiosis of Azolla and its cyanobiont, we aim to identify the molecular mechanisms that shape and allow for the permanency of this symbiosis. To do so, we employ a multidisciplinary omics approach combined with in-depth phenotyping of the consequences of the symbioses. We further investigate the how the symbiosis plays out in the face of pathogenic challenges with the aim of understanding how immunity must be controlled to maintain an organellar-like interaction.

Homepage Department/Research Group

https://azollabiont.wordpress.com

Selected Recent Publications


  • de Vries S, Herrfurth C, Li F-W, Feussner I, de Vries J. (2023) An ancient route towards salicylic acid and its implications for the perpetual Trichormus–Azolla symbiosis. |Preprint available on bioRxiv doi: 10.1101/2021.03.12.435107 | Plant, Cell and Environment. 46: 2884–2908.
  • Dadras A, Rieseberg TP, Zegers JMS, Fürst-Jansen JMR, Irisarri I, de Vries J, de Vries S. (2023). Accessible versatility underpins the deep evolution of plant specialized metabolism. Phytochemistry Reviews. doi: 10.1007/s11101-023-09863-2.
  • de Vries S, de Vries J. (2022). Evolutionary genomic insights into cyanobacterial symbioses in plants. Quantitative Plant Biology. 3: e16 | Invited contribution.
  • Li F-W, Nishiyama T, Frangedakis E, Keller J, Li Z, Pozo N, Waller M, Barker M, Bennett T, Chen S, Cuming A, de Vries J, de Vries S [20 co-authors] Szövényi P. (2020) Anthoceros genomes illuminate the origin of land plants and the unique biology of hornworts. Nature Plants. 6: 259 – 272.
  • de Vries S, Stukenbrock EH, Rose LE. (2020). Rapid evolution in plant-microbe interactions - an evolutionary genomics perspective. New Phytologist. 226: 1259 – 1262.
  • de Vries S, de Vries J, Teschke H, von Dahlen JK, Rose LE, Gould SB. (2018). Jasmonic and salicylic acid response in the fern Azolla filiculoides and its cyanobiont. Plant, Cell and Environment. 41: 2530 – 2548. | Highlighted in Plantae, What We’re Reading This Week.