Host-parasite interactions are common in nature and can evolve rapidly, resulting in reciprocal changes in host resistance and parasite infectivity. In this proposal, I will experimentally test if coevolution between plant-pathogenic Ralstonia solanacearum bacterium and its phage parasite cascade through the food chain, changing the ecology of pathogen-plant interaction. To achieve this, I will use a novel plant infection model, which allows tracking phage-bacterium population dynamics and coevolution in the tomato rhizosphere. I will focus on two feedback links: pathogen density regulation by the phage and the evolution of costly trade-offs between pathogen virulence and resistance to phages. The expected outcomes will help to understand the role of phages in plant pathogen outbreaks in agricultural environments and to address the long-term efficacy of phage-mediated pathogen biocontrol over successive plant generations at an evolutionary timescale.

2023

2027