Establishing sustainable agriculture is a process that poses special challenges. Actions must not only be effective, but also environmentally friendly. Biostimulants are an effective tool because they naturally favor plant and crop development by stimulating nutritional processes and tolerance to abiotic stressors. Biosurfactants, surface-active secondary metabolites of natural origin, combine several beneficial properties for plants and are commonly considered to be environmentally friendly, biodegradable, and low to non-toxic.
In previous experiments, both a growth-promoting effect on plants and the production of surface-active substances were observed for two bacterial isolates. In this mini-project, these substances will be analyzed in more detail. The analysis includes the characterization of the molecular structures, as well as a basic evaluation of their suitability as biostimulants for sustainable plant production.
This project was independently initiated by PhD students Sandra Bredenbruch and Nina Stadler. We are very proud of you and congratulate you on the approval.