Turin Headquarter

The impact of Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) infection on pepper crops in Piedmont is considerable, as the cultivated varieties are generally susceptible to this virus and do not have specific resistance genes. TSWV is one of the most economically harmful viruses worldwide and its infection can lead to the total loss of crops, especially if the infection occurs early. The project aims at investigating the use of exogenous dsRNAs associated with nanoparticles and essential oils to protect pepper crops from TSWV attack. The used approach is in line with…

The project WATDEV – Climate Smart WATer Management and Sustainable DEVelopment for Food and Agriculture in East Africa is funded by the DeSIRA initiative of the European Union and aims to develop an in-depth understanding of small and large-scale water and agricultural resource dynamics and management while boosting people’s resilience to climate, through innovative research, modelling, and capacity building approaches. The scarcity or limited availability of water resources and climate conditions are severely compromising agricultural production and food security in many East African countries. WATDEV project targets Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan,…

Bio-based solutions, such as Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR), are a sustainable agriculture practice to promote crop yield under increasing stress conditions caused by Climate change (CC). The Joint Lab project between Italy and Pakistan will assess the effects of PGPR strains selected from arid environments on the performance of model plants (i.e. wheat, pea and Arundo) subjected to water deficit also in interaction with [CO2] enrichment. Physiological, biochemical and molecular analyses will evaluate plant responses to CC-driven stress during PGPR colonization. Soil metagenomics will verify the impact on soil…