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Abstract
We need innovation in agriculture to feed a growing world. Understanding and utilizing microbes is an important approach to maintain crop health and increase yield. The research presented here aims to explore how maize genetics and the environment affect the host’s interactions with endophytes and the microbiome. In my first project I inoculated diverse maize with potential growth promoting endophytes, and showed that maize cultivar plays an important role in whether growth-promotion occurs or not. In my second project I looked at the role inbreeding had on maize microbiomes in field and greenhouse grown maize. While host genetics were important, differences in maize microbiomes were more strongly associated with environment and tissue. In my final project I looked at bacterial and fungal microbiomes in commercial maize across the United States. I found that tissue, rather than environment, had the largest impact on microbiome structure and networks, and found potential gene pathways important for transition of microbes from one tissue niche to another. Understanding these mechanisms will allow researchers and companies to better utilize endophytes and the microbiome for crop improvement.