Pierre Frendo
University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, France
Keynote: Arch Clin Microbiol
Nitrogen-fixing symbiosis between rhizobium bacteria and legumes leads to the formation of a new organ, the root nodule. Inside the plant nodule cell, the bacteria differentiate into bacteroids, which are able to reduce atmospheric nitrogen to plant assimilable ammonia in exchange for carbon sources. Redox state regulates the development and the functioning of root nodules. Most particularly, bacterial redox signals and cellular plant-bacteria crosstalk controls the differentiation of bacteria into bacteroids. This lecture will address the importance of redox control through bacterial glutaredoxins and plant thioredoxins in bacterial differentiation and survival during nitrogen-fixing symbiosis.
Pierre Frendo has studied the physiology and the molecular regulation of nitrogen-fixing symbiosis between rhizobia and leguminous plants for more than 15 years. He has published more than 50 articles in international peer-reviewed journals and books. He is the group Leader of a team of ten Reseachers/Lecturers, working on the redox regulation of the plant/ bacteria interaction during nitrogen-fixing symbiosis. He has served on the review commitees for the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research, the National Science Foundation, the Austrian Science Fund and the French National Research Agency. He is a Member of the Scientific Strategic Council, the Nice-Sophia Antipolis Labex Signalife Pedagogical Committee. He is an Elected Member of the French National Council of Universities and a Member of the French Society of Plant Biology.
E-mail: frendo@unice.fr