AgBiome

Role within PROMISE:

AgBiome will support the PROMISE project by screening collections of microbes for their ability to solubilize phosphate. These microbes will be tested in HTP Striga bioassays for their potential to reduce Striga infection. AgBiome will also screen their fully sequenced microbe collection in silico for pathways of interest and validate their biocontrol efficacy in the HTP Striga bioassays. They will assist in isolating microbes of interest from both suppressive and non-suppressive soils, targeting those with activity seen in the HTP Striga bioassays. The team will also support the functional characterization of Striga suppressive microbes using whole genome and metabalomics data generated throughout the project.  

The following people are involved:

Tracy Raines, Principal Investigator
Tracy is a molecular biologist with extensive experience in biotechnology environments 

Kestrel McCorkle, Plant Pathology
Kestrel is a plant pathologist with experience developing high-throughput lab assays and conducting greenhouse/field trials to determine efficacy of agricultural products.   

James Kremer, Microbiology
James is a microbial ecologist interested in plant-microbe interactions.  

Chuck Pepe-Ranney, Bioinformatics
Chuck is a genomics scientist at AgBiome with a background in environmental microbiology.   

Amber Smith, Researcher
Amber coordinates lab and pilot scale fermentations of microbial strains in-house and at Contract Manufacturing Organizations (CMOs).

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