Sanna Sevanto shares surprises she encountered during attempts to harness microbes to improve plant drought tolerance Sept. 21 during virtual Science on Tap . Photo Courtesy LANL

BRADBURY SCIENCE MUSEUM NEWS

Science on Tap is back! Please join Sanna Sevanto of the Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Earth System Observations group on Monday, Sept. 21, for a lively (yet virtual) conversation about microbes: the good, the bad and the ugly. 

Microbes can have a large influence on the well-being of their hosts. Pathogenic microbes can be completely detrimental, while probiotics can significantly improve host well-being.

The industry of human probiotics is growing fast, and with the need for improved agricultural productivity, development of probiotics for plants is also increasing. Plant growth and stress tolerance, however, are controlled by some fundamental trade-offs that make improving plant stress tolerance using probiotics challenging.

In this talk, Sanna will discuss how plant stress responses can be affected by their microbial associates. She’ll also share surprises she encountered while attempting to harness microbes to improve plant drought tolerance.

To join us for our first virtual Science on Tap, 5:30 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21, please register here on Webex.