Task Leaders are the responsible persons to help focus on the scientific and technical questions related with plant microbial socialisation. They are key persons as project consultants. 

Task 1 – Designing the Biofertilizer BioClub. We expect to provide two BioClub formulations that present the highest potential for biofilm formation with the endophytic A. brasilense strain.

Luis Carvalho - Plant ­soil ecology (L Carvalho)

Rogério Tenreiro - Microbiology (R Tenreiro)

Task 2 – Response of plants with potential biofilm inoculants to distinct environmental factors. We expect to show that the plants inoculated with a microbial consortium with high potential to form biofilm containing endophytic A. brasilense will: 1) have a consistent wheat growth performance; 2) recruit more beneficial microbes; 3) have more endophytic bacteria.

Amarilis de Varennes - Crop productivity (A de Varennes)

Patrícia Correia - Plant soil ecology (Patrícia Correia)

Task 3 - Are inoculated wheat plants more resistant to pathogen attacks? We expect to assess the effect of the inoculant on plant resistance to two important wheat diseases and to determine whether the beneficial effects of wheat inoculation are still present when phytosanitary treatments are used.

Manuela Carolino - Microbiology (M Carolino)

Cristina Cruz - Plant Physiology (Cristina Cruz)

Task 4 – Field trials. This task intends to evaluate the efficiency of the biofertilizer BioClub in promoting wheat productivity and grain nutritional quality under field conditions.

Patrícia Correia - Plant soil ecology (Patrícia Correia)

Teresa Dias -  Environmental impacts of agriculture (MT Dias)

Task 5: BioClub - understanding crop socialisation. With this task we intend to develop different actions and activities at several levels and with distinct targets: scientific community, economic stakeholders and general society to disseminate the importance of microbial consortia.

Maria Amélia Martins-Loução - Science Communication (Maria Amélia Martins-Loução)

Francisco Dionísio - Evolutionary Ecology (Francisco Dionísio)

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cE3c-FCUL (Home) is the proponent and the leader institution of BioClub. ISA (Instituto Superior de Agronomia) will be a main responsible partner, in collaboration with Eng C Pinto (J. Castro Pinto), for the agronomic decisions. 

Soilvitae and AMCChemical (AMC, Soilvitae) will be the main advisers concerning the biofertilizer design.

The European Phosphorus Platform (ESPP) will provide a dissemination of the results concerning the improvements of BioClub on the optimization of phosphorus use efficiency.

Cimmyt (Cimmyt) will provide advice and critical judgement on the potential of the BioClub to improve wheat resistance to stress conditions (water and temperature) and will evaluate the possibility of using the BioClub as a wheat seed coating.

Fertiprado (Fertiprado) will provide critical thinking on the possibility of using BioClub, not only for wheat, but also for other grains used in biodiverse pastures where the use of biofertilizers may decrease P application.