Speaker
Description
The European “Green Deal” comes at a pivotal moment for the agri-food sector. Climate crisis, energy costs, and regulations, threaten food security. Currently, the development of alternatives to conventional pesticides and fertilizers seems one way. The developments in the field of biostimulants could greatly assist in combating issues that the agri-food sector is facing. Biostimulants will play a significant role in agriculture, by providing improved and environmentally friendly solutions to plant protection and nutrition. Nevertheless, the mechanism(s) of action (MoA) of the majority of biostimulants are largely unknown, therefore, cutting-edge bioanalytical tools should be employed. Metabolomics can play an essential role by providing a global overview of the effects of biostimulants on target organisms’ metabolism, and subsequently insights into the underlying operating mechanisms. In this context, our research groups have been investigating the effects of microbial and non-microbial biostimulants and biocontrols on the metabolism of target organisms (plants and microorganisms) by GC/EI/MS metabolomics. The effect of such bioactives has been investigated on plant species such as tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), corn (Zea mays L.), olive tree (Olea europaea L.), cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.), and the aquatic plant Duckweed (Lemna minor L.). Metabolomics has revealed substantial impact of the applied biostimulants on plants’ metabolism, including fluctuations in metabolites that play key roles, being intermediates and signaling molecules (e.g. α-linolenate, salicylate), Krebs Cycle Intermediates (KCI), key precursors of secondary metabolites (e.g. tryptophane, tyrosine, phenylalanine), and bioactive compounds [e.g. Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), cannabidiol (CBD)]. Based on our research it is evident that metabolomics can greatly assist the research on biostimulants, thus, assisting the effort to secure food supply, while safeguarding the environment.
