SANGARE Awa

Thesis subject: Genetic resistance and stimulation of plant defenses to control three tomato pathogensGenetic resistance and stimulation of plant defenses to control three tomato pathogens

• Context: This thesis is part of the Cap Zéro Phyto project (Adaptation of the concept of ecological immunity to crop protection: Rosaceae and Solanaceae) in response to the call for projects of the priority research program (PPR) 'cultivating and protecting differently'. The aim of the Cap Zéro Phyto project is to propose new crop protection strategies based on the combined use of immune levers designed to modulate crop defense mechanisms, with the ultimate goal of developing 'zero pesticide' cropping systems to reduce the negative impact of these products on public health and the environment.
• Objectives of the thesis: This thesis, proposed by the Genetics and Improvement of Fruits and Vegetables (GAFL) and Plant Pathology (PV) units of INRAE Avignon, focuses on the study of two immune levers for combating pathogenic tomato fungi: genetic resistance and plant defense stimulation (PDS). The thesis will be divided into two parts. The first part will involve mapping QTLs (Quantitative Trait Loci) for resistance to powdery mildew and gray mold in F2 tomato progenies. The PhD student will carry out resistance tests, DNA extractions and analysis of genotyping data, to build genetic maps and locate resistance QTLs. The second part of the thesis will analyze the defense mechanisms brought into play by the application of plant defense stimulators (PDS) against powdery mildew, downy mildew and gray mold. The PhD student will analyze transcriptomic and metabolomic data and set up a system to map the loci involved in variation in response to certain SDPs, using association genetics.
• Supervision: This thesis will be co-supervised by Marc Bardin (DR2 INRAE, HDR - Plant Pathology) and Bernard Caromel IEHC INRAE - GAFL). It will benefit from the contributions of several scientific and technical partners involved in the Cap Zéro Phyto project.