In Finland, 15 % of Norway spruce trees cut are rotted and commercially less valuable due to Heterobasidion infection. The economic effects of the infection approximate to 40 - 50 million euros yearly. The disease is controlled by use of chemicals and biocontrol agents. Unfortunately, these treatments do not lead to full protection. New research approaches on novel biomolecules could provide a clue on potential control measures. My research therefore seeks a mechanistic understanding of the fundamental processes that mediate the disease resistance and multitrophic interactions. Using Heterobasidion-spruce as a model, I propose i) testing for the abundance of novel gene transcripts and their associations with disease resistance ii) to test for the potential use of antimicrobial peptide (AMP) in novel disease control strategies, as well as in the breeding of disease-resistant plants iii) to unravel mechanism of how endophyte effectors are used to modulate host defense or pathogenesis.

2024

2028