Elianca Klaasen, council member

About my research

It is becoming increasingly clear that microorganisms not only help plants take up nutrients but also play an important role in enhancing plant resistance to pathogens. My PhD project focuses on the assembly of plant-protective downy mildew-associated microbiota (DAMs), with a particular emphasis on the lettuce phyllosphere microbiome during downy mildew infection. Lettuce downy mildew, caused by Bremia lactucae, is considered the most important foliar disease of lettuce worldwide. I investigate the composition, assembly and function of the resulting Bremia-associated microbiota (BAM) using a combination of bioinformatic approaches and microscopy. In addition, I aim to determine whether specific lettuce genes influence the plant's ability to recruit these protective microbes.