Molecular ecophysiology as tool for the selection of highly stress resistant poplar species for multipurpose forests - ESTABLISH






The multidisciplinary proposal with partners of 9 countries aimed at combining biotechnological, molecular and ecophysiological methods to provide functional knowledge about salinity and drought-resistance in trees, to provide selection markers for conventional breeding techniques, for the production of engineered trees, to develop protocols for efficient production of stress-resistant species, to establish pilot plantations of trees in combination with conventinal ferstations in arid conditions and on eroding, polutted soils. The results of this project generated criteria for the selction of trees for restoration and protection of multi-purpose forests (emphasis on protection forests). Such criteria are the pre-requiste for efficient and sustainable management strategies. Within the genus the species Populus euphratica and Poplus alba have been chosen because their natural occurance covers the widest range of conditions relevant to this project (salinity, semi-arid climate, soil erosion). Field plots and field trials were established; pilot plantations interspersed with other species (multi-purpose-forests) have been installed during this project. We had developed a micorpropagation systems for the easy multiplication of plant material and supply of plants to other partners; we conducted field measurements to analyse morphological traits of poplar related to stress-tolerance and analyse root morphology. By applying stress (slainity, drought) under controlled conditions, we produced material for the construction of an EST-library. Using this library we cloned putative Na/H+ antiporters and conducted functional analysis. To detect regulons for adaptive traits we used expression profilling by microarrays.




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The project was funded by the EU.