Beneficial Plant-Microbe Interactions Group

Our research is focused on the study of the Rhizobium-legume and the ectomycorrhizal symbioses and their tolerance to environmental stresses, with the aim of optimizing their application in agriculture and in the restoration of degraded soils and ecosystems.
Research Lines:
- Study of the legume-rhizobium and ectomycorrhizal symbioses.
- Microbial diversity in agricultural and forest systems
- Response of plants and microorganisms to abiotic stress and global change
- Phytoremediation and soil restoration through the use of symbiotic associations.
- Group Leader
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PUEYO, JOSÉ J.
Research Professor - Personnel
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LUCAS SÁNCHEZ, M. MERCEDES
Scientific ResearcherQUIÑONES GOMEZ, MIGUEL ÁNGEL
ResearcherRINCÓN HERRANZ, ANA M.
ResearcherPRIETO RUBIO, JORGE
Pre-doctoral ResearcherFAJARDO MOLINA, SUSANA
Research AssistantMORCILLO BLANCO, CÉSAR NATALIO
Research AssistantPALLOL IGEÑO, BEATRIZ
Research AssistantMATEO VERA, BORJA
Research Assistant

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Identification and selection of legume cultivars, and rhizobial, endophytes and PGPR strains, with high tolerance to heavy metals and salt stress, for their potential use in phytoremediation and saline soils
García de la Torre VS, Coba de la Peña T, Pueyo JJ, Lucas MM. 2021. Cadmium-tolerant and -sensitive cultivars identified by screening of Medicago truncatula germplasm display contrasting responses to cadmium stress. Front Plant Sci 12: 595001. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.595001
Hidri R, Mahmoud OM-B, Farhat N, Pueyo JJ, Abdelly C, Azcon R. 2019. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus and rhizobacteria affect the physiology and performance of Sulla coronaria plants subjected to salt stress by mitigation of ionic imbalance. J Plant Nut and Soil Sci182: 451-462.
Hmaeid N, Wali M, Metoui-Bem Mahmoud O, Pueyo JJ, Ghanaya T, Abdelly C. 2019. Efficient rhizobacteria promote growth and alleviate NaCl-induced stress in the plant species Sulla carnosa. Appl Soil Ecol 133:104-113.
Yahaghi Z, Shirvani M, Nourbakhsh F, Pueyo JJ. 2019. Uptak,e and effects of lead and zinc on alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) seed germination and seedling growth: Role of plant growth promoting bacteria. South African J Bot 124: 573-582.
Chinnaswamy A, Coba de la Peña T, Stoll A, de la Peña Rojo D, Bravo J, Rincón A, Lucas MM, Pueyo JJ. 2018. A nodule endophytic Bacillus megaterium strain isolated from Medicago polymorpha enhances growth, promotes nodulation by Ensifer medicae and alleviates salt stress in alfalfa plants. Ann App Biol 172: 295- 308. https://doi.org/10.1111/aab.12420
Cordero I, Balaguer L, Pueyo JJ, Rincón A. 2018. Inoculation of tomato plants with selected PGPR is a feasible alternative to chemical fertilization under salt stress conditions. J Plant Nut 181: 694-703.
Yahaghi Z, Shirvani M, Nourbakhsh F, Pueyo JJ, Talebi M. 2018. Isolation and characterization of Pb-solubilizing bacteria and their effects on Pb uptake by Brassica juncea: Implications for microbe-assisted phytoremediation. J Microbiol Biotech 28: 1156-1167. -
Characterization of the response mechanisms to heavy metals in legumes and rhizobia: the expression of genes encoding NADPH-recycling enzymes in Medicago truncatula, and of mer genes in Ensifer medicae are related to greater tolerance to Cd and Hg, respec
García de la Torre VS, Coba de la Peña T, Pueyo JJ, Lucas MM. 2021. Cadmium-tolerant and -sensitive cultivars identified by screening of Medicago truncatula germplasm display contrasting responses to cadmium stress. Front Plant Sci 12: 595001. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.595001
Arregui GE, Hipólito P, Pallol B, Lara-Dampier V, García-Rodríguez D, Varela HP, Zanian PT, Balomenos D, Paape T, Coba de La Peña T, Lucas MM, Pueyo JJ. 2021. Mercury-tolerant Ensifer medicae strains display high mercuric reductase activity and a protective effect on nitrogen fixation in Medicago truncatula nodules under mercury stress. Front Plant Sci 11: 560768. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.560768 -
Analysis of structural and functional aspects of legume nodules in relation to: the legume-rhizobium symbiosis evolution, the plant nutrition, and their tolerance to abiotic stresses (heavy metals, salinity, phosphorus deficiency)
The symbiosome as a nitrogen-fixing organelle and its possible future integration, as such, in host cells.
Coba de la Peña T, Fedorova E, Pueyo JJ, Lucas MM. 2018. The symbiosome: legume and rhizobia co-evolution towards a nitrogen-fixing organelle? Front Plant Sci 8: 2229. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2017.02229
Analyses of the ionome and certain potassium channels, in nodule infected and uninfected cells, reveal differences that might be related to the early senescence of the infected cells and the nodule tolerance to ionic stress.
Fedorova E, Coba de la Peña T, Lara-Dampier V, Kulikova O, Pueyo JJ, Lucas MM. 2021. Potassium content diminishes in infected cells of Medicago truncatula nodules due to the mislocation of channels MtAKT1 and MtSKOR/GORK. J Exp Bot 72: 1336–1348. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eraa508
Proposal of a model for the interrelation of phosphorus and nitrogen metabolisms in lupin nodules and proteoid roots.
Pueyo JJ, Quiñones MA, Coba de La Peña T, Fedorova EE, Lucas MM. 2021. Nitrogen and phosphorus interplay in lupin root nodules and cluster roots. Front Plant Sci 12: 644218. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.644218 -
The ecological adaptation of plants and microorganisms to local environmental conditions explains functional strategies and structural changes in response to environmental stress
Water availability in its original environment influences the plant photoprotection strategy in response to drought stress.
Cordero I, Jiménez MD, Delgado JA, Balaguer L, Pueyo JJ, Rincón A. 2021. Costs and benefits of photoprotection strategies under drought stress depend on the seed origin of a Neotropical Caesalpinia clade tree species. Tree Physiol tpab034 https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpab034
Local adaptation of two pine species to high fire recurrence determines the taxonomic and functional diversity of their associated ectomycorrhizal fungal communities.
Pérez-Izquierdo L, Zabal-Aguirre M, Bueé M, Verdú M, Rincón A. 2020. Ectomycorrhizal fungal diversity decreases in Mediterranean pine forests adapted to recurrent fires. Mol Ecol 13: 2463-2476 https://doi.org/doi.org/10.1111/mec.15493
Response of soil microbial communities to disturbances induced by drought or deforestation.
Flores-Rentería D, Curiel-Yuste J, Valladares F, Rincón A. 2018. Soil legacies determine the resistance of an experimental plant-soil system to drought. Catena 166: 271-278 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2018.04.011
Cordero I, Ruíz-Díez B, Balaguer L, Richter A, Pueyo JJ, Rincón A. 2017. Rhizospheric microbial community of Caesalpinia spinosa in preserved and deforested zones of the Atiquipa fog forest in Peru. App Soil Ecol 114: 132-141 -
Changes in diversity and specific composition of soil bacterial and fungal communities entail functional consequences in Mediterranean forest ecosystems
Pérez-Izquierdo L, Zabal-Aguirre M, González-Martínez S, Buée M, Verdú M, Rincón A, Goberna M. 2019. Plant genotype modulates nutrient cycling through its belowground microbial cloud. J Ecol 107: 1594-1605 https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13202
Pérez-Izquierdo L, Saint-André L, Santenoise P, Buée M, Rincón A. 2018. Tree genotype and seasonal imprints on soil properties and biogeochemical functioning in Mediterranean pine forests. Eur J Soil Sci 69: 1087-1097 https://doi.org/10.1111/ejss.12712
Flores-Rentería D, Rincón A, Morán-López T, Heres AM, Pérez-Izquierdo L, Valladares F, Curiel-Yuste J. 2018. Habitat fragmentation is linked to cascading effects on soil functioning and CO2 emissions in Mediterranean Holm-oak forests. PeerJ 6:e5857 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5857
Pérez-Izquierdo L, Zabal-Aguirre M, Flores-Rentería D, González-Martínez SC, Buée M, Rincón A. 2017. Functional outcomes of structural shifts in fungal communities driven by tree genotype and spatial-temporal factors in Mediterranean pine forests. Environ Microbiol 19 (4): 1639-1652 -
Development of a new molecular marker to study functional diversity in soil fungal communities
Pérez-Izquierdo L; Morin E; Maurice JP; Martin F; Rincón A; Buée M. 2017. A new promising molecular marker to study the functional diversity of fungal communities: the GLYCOSIDE HYDROLASE 63 gene. Mol Ecol Res 17 (6): e1-e11.