Feeding a rapidly growing human populationis becoming increasingly difficult

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research Inc. $180,000 on May 1, 2026, under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Program (CFDA 10.310) to investigate the molecular basis of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal accommodation by host plants, with focus on understanding how kinase CS proteins enable the symbiotic relationship between certain fungi and crop species.

The project examines mechanisms by which kinase CS proteins facilitate arbuscule formation—the specialized nutrient-exchange structures fungi develop within plant root cells—and investigates how these kinases compare to other known symbiosis regulators, what protein interactions they establish, and the downstream pathways they activate. By clarifying how plants accommodate fungal partners at the cellular level, the research aims to enhance crop productivity and reduce dependence on phosphate fertilizers, which are finite resources and environmentally problematic through agricultural runoff.

Performance occurs in Ithaca, New York, with a period of performance from May 1, 2026, through April 30, 2029. The assistance type is a Project Grant. AFRI supports research, education, extension, and integrated grants across six farm bill priority areas, with FY 2026 funding of $435 million allocated to improve rural economies, increase agricultural profitability, stimulate the bioeconomy, and train the next generation of the food and agriculture workforce.

One common barrierto crop production is nutrient deficiency in soils, which is worsened bymonoculture practices.to overcome nutrient limitations in soils, current agricultural practices primarily rely on heavy application of expensive phosphate fertilizers derived from phosphate rock, a finite and dwindling resource. Additionally, using thesefertilizers is inefficient, as a significant proportion of the nutrientsnever reachesthe plants they'RE meant to feed.instead, the extra materialaccumulatesin soils and runs off into waterways, where they causetoxic algal blooms. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (am) symbiosis is a plant-fungal symbiosis between certain fungi and 72% of flowering plants, including most crop species. In this relationship, the fungi provide their plant host with mineral nutrients in exchange for sugars and lipids from the plant. Therefore, understanding this symbiosis and how to enhance IT is a promising avenue for improving crop productivity and reducing our dependence on these fertilizers.during symbiosis, am fungi in the soil grow into the roots of their host, eventually entering individual cells, where they form specialized structures with the plant for nutrient exchange called arbuscules.however, IT remains largely unclear how exactly the am host plants undergo these extreme changes to house thefungus within their cells. Therefore, the overarching goal of this projectis to understand the molecular basis of fungal accommodation byhost plants. Ithas been shown that thekinase CS (kincs),a pair of kinases that SIT at the nutrient-exchange interface, are essential for successful am symbiosis, as plants without them abortarbusucle formation. This project investigates the mechanism by which the kincs enable symbiosis byasking: (1) how similar is kincs' role to already understood regulators of symbiosis, (2) what other proteins do the kincs interact with, and (3) what downstream pathways are impacted by kinc function?to effectively harness am symbiosis, we must first know how IT works. Studyingthe role of thekincs, a linchpin of this ecologically and agriculturally important plant-fungal relationship, will help the scientific communitybetter understand this symbiosis. By doing so, this study will build foundational knowledge to support efforts to engineer or breed optimized am hosts for improved nutrient acquisition, laying some of the groundwork to eventually help growers reduce their useof expensive and environmentally hazardous phosphate fertilizers.