The Interreg Italy-Austria project
"Cedric—Creating a sustainable, cross-border agroecosystem
involving by exploiting the biodiversity of the root
microbiome," for which Trieste's ICGEB is the lead partner, aims
to strengthen the microbiological biodiversity of areas and
soils characterized by a scarce or altered microbial ecosystem.
Inspired by the success of human microbiome transplantation,
the project aims to transplant healthy plant root microbiomes
into poor and exploited soils to affect soil structure,
microbiology, nutrient density, and overall soil carbon levels.
The project's kick-off meeting, involving eight partners between
Italy and Austria, including four universities and three
companies, occurred yesterday.
"Plant microbiome transplantation represents not only an
opportunity for the development of sustainable agronomic
practices but also a unique opportunity for the creation of
long-term cross-border collaborations that bring together
researchers, farmers, and industry," said Vittorio Venturi, head
of ICGEB's Bacteriology laboratory.
Co-funded by the EU, the 24-month project has three axes:
"development of a cross-border alliance for scientific
collaboration to develop and validate and root microbiome
transplantation methodology; creation of a cross-border platform
for stakeholders in agronomy, agricultural production, and
research to foster the use of sustainable and
biodiversity-enhancing techniques; a training program to
familiarize practitioners on the role of the microbiome in the
ecosystem and the potential related to its use."
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