Glyphosate (N-phosphonomethyl-glycine)(GP) is one of the most used herbicide in the world. As post-emergent, broad spectrum, non-selective systemic herbicide, it provides several agricultural benefits, controlling weeds and grasses in agriculture, silviculture and urban areas. However, improper use and excessive spray during the decades resulted in GP contamination of soils and waters, raising concerns about potential deleterious effects on ecosystems, non-target organisms, including humans, and on crops. Fungi provide ecosystem services also through the activity of transforming and detoxifying pollutants. Fungal bioremediation can provide highly efficient, environment-friendly and cost-effective solutions to cope with GP and promising technological approaches inspired by nature.
The present project aims to investigate the interactions between soil saprotrophic fungi and glyphosate through enrichment tests and soil microcosms experiments, in order to deepen the understanding of fungal mechanisms of GP utilization as nutritional source and develop a feasible and sustainable strategy for GP bioremediation.
The innovative nature of this project is to investigate the interactions between some soil saprotrophic fungi, not previously tested, and glyphosate (GP) through an integrated multidisciplinary approach in order to study the fungal GP biodegration in different nutritional conditions. Potential in GP biodegradation and its use as P or N or C sources will be evaluated through modern analytical methodologies, contributing to the general knowledge of the microbial GP biodegradation and the understanding of the environmental fate of the herbicide. The applicability and feasibility of these species will be also evaluated though soil microcosm tests in an up-scaling step of the investigation process. The comprehension of the tested species¿ behavior in soils will help in improving the efficiency of the biotechnological applications in field. Thanks to molecular and enzymatic analyses, it will be possible to deepen the metabolic mechanisms and biological functions involved by fungi in the presence of GP. Next generation sequencing technology will be implemented to shed further light in GP-fungal transcriptome. Enzyme activity analyses will deepen the antioxidant stress responses by fungi and the possible activation of important GP-degrading enzymes involved in the biodegradation process. The best performing soil saprotrophic fungi could be applied as new bioresources to develop a feasible, cost-effective and sustainable strategy for GP bioremediation in soils. As new bioresources they will be an effective toolbox with multiple functions, that will contribute to provisioning, regulating and supporting ecosystems services for living organisms and human wellbeing of present and future generations.