Microbiological and chemical screening of contrasting chemotypes of Brassica oleracea aided by untargeted metabolomics and computational tools
Brassicaceous vegetables, such as cabbages and mustards, show antimicrobial properties against various clinically relevant pathogenic microorganisms. Species within this family also exhibit intra- and infraspecific chemical variation relevant to plant pathogen resistance. In a 2023 field trial, 318 accessions of seven different Brassica oleracea vegetables were cultivated at IGZ. Targeted analysis of glucosinolates (GLS) and their hydrolysis products revealed significant chemodiversity among accessions. Based on these targeted analyses, we hypothesize that the observed variation in GLS profiles extends to a broader and unexplored bioactive chemodiversity. Here, we propose to combine the power of untargeted metabolomics and bioinformatics to delve deeper into this unexplored chemodiversity in the search for new active compounds against human and plant pathogens. Participants: IGZ, DSMZ, IPB (Germany)
Micromolecular valorization of Brazilian specialty coffees: a geographic origin, sensorial and chemical correlation
Coffee is an important commodity, grown in more than 80 countries and traded on all continents. Brazil is the main producer and exporter. The state of Minas Gerais accounts for half of the national production, with large cultivation areas distributed in the regions Sul de Minas’, ‘Cerrado’, ‘Chapada de Minas’, and ‘Matas de Minas’. The species Coffea arabica is the most sold and consumed in the world due to its sensory characteristics, such as sweetness, acidity, and aroma. These attributes are a consequence of the chemical composition of the coffee bean, which can be influenced by external factors, soil and climate conditions, or by processes carried out between its harvesting and consumption. One of the most valuable niches in the market is specialty coffee, for which both production and analysis are certified by specialized evaluators (Q-graders) and internationally carried out according to the protocols described by the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). However, despite being standardized, this is a subjective analysis in which it is not possible to distinguish the presence or content of different classes of chemical substances commonly present. Therefore, the present study aims at the chemical analysis of specialty coffees produced in different regions of the state of Minas Gerais, in order to determine the relative composition of chemical markers that complement the sensorial classification, as well as to provide chemical parameters for the evaluation of their quality, authentication of the origin and national and international valuation.
Integrated omics for the micromolecular study of soybean genetically modified for water stress tolerance in the context of climate change
In Brazil, soybeans are the main export commodities, making the country the second world´s largest producer. However, this crop presents an impressive susceptibility to climatic and water variations, which undergoes important and undesirable losses of productivity and quality. From this perspective, the development and characterization of new genotypes more tolerant to such events corroborate the need of increasing productivity and reduce economic losses due to this susceptibility. Therefore, this project aims to couple metabolomic and transcriptomic approaches as a complementary tool to the genomic and transcriptomic approaches for the evaluation and selection of molecular traits present in different genotypes of Glycine max (soybean) subjected to drought and flood conditions, also contributing to the development and registration of new varieties with high added technologic value.
