Integrative planT ecOmetabOLomics (iTOOLs) for biodiversity

In the second funding cycle of iDiv, the number of biodiversity research projects incorporating metabolomics has considerably increased. Several Flexpool projects (DANCE, iEstimate, MacBeSST), individual projects in the IRTG TreeDì and FG Jena Experiment as well as individual DFG grant proposals applied for by various iDiv members, explicitly contain ecometabolomics as a novel tool in biodiversity research. Metabolomic analyses are particularly helpful to understand which mechanisms underlie organismal interactions and help plants to adapt to environmental change. Moreover, several of these projects also aim to incorporate metabolomic data as novel plant traits in databases such as TRY. In this workshop we will bring together these projects in the iDiv consortium to exchange strategies and create synergies. Our goals will be:

1. Exchange experience and critical aspects how metabolomics can be successfully used to answer ecological questions in various projects
2. Identify needs and expectations of currently funded research projects with regards to support by EcoMetEoR (analytical, bioinformatics, statistics)
3. Make an inventory of potential new projects in iDiv
4. Find common ground and develop new initiatives to implement ecometabolomics in the (East) German and international biodiversity research community.

We will invite all PIs, postdocs and PhDs involved in the current iDiv projects and explicitly welcome additional iDiv members with interest to apply ecometabolomics in their research.
 

Session organizer(s): Henriette Uthe, Nicole van Dam, Steffen Neumann,

Input talks:

1^st Session (90 min)

Henriette Uthe “EcoMeteor: what kind of support can the platform provide right now, what are the plans for 2021?” (15 minutes)

10 minutes flash presentations (+15 min questions and discussion)

• iEstimate (Kristian Peters)
• DANCE (Sylvia Haider)

2^nd Session (90 min)

Feedback on first session – present identified common needs

10 minutes flash presentations (+15 min questions and discussion) on the science and the ‘final figure that tells it all’

• Disentangle sources of among-population variation in competitive ability (Christoph Rosche)
• Epigenetic factors as molecular drivers of microbial biodiversity (Holger Deising)

Wrap up and summarize:

• Ideas from and for Ecometeor – approaches to address the needs
• Further initiatives in iDiv (new projects, programs, trainings)
• Metabolomic initiatives beyond iDiv
• Next meetings – when, who, where?

Preparation for the workshop:
We ask all participants to fill a power point template before joining the workshop. These templates will be provided to all registered participants of this workshop prior to the session and can be send to henriette.uthe@idiv.de in advance or used spontaneously during the workshop.