Juan Manuel Ruiz-Lozano

Dr. Juan Manuel Ruiz-Lozano is currently Scientific Researcher at CSIC in the Department of Soil Microbiology and Symbiotic Systems from the Estación Experimental del Zaidín, Granada. Spain. He got his degree in Biology in 1991 and then he carried out a Ph.D. Thesis in Biology at the University of Granada, completed in 1995. After that, he started two postdoctoral stays first at INRA in Dijon, France and then at the University of Torino, Italy. Since 2000 he focussed his research activities in elucidating the physiological and molecular mechanisms by which the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis enhances the tolerance of the host plants to the water deficit imposed by osmotic stresses. In this way he has demonstrated the ability of the AM fungal mycelium to take up water from sources inaccessible to roots and transferring this water to the host plant. The induction by arbuscular mycorrizae of antioxidant enzyme activities and accumulation of non-enzymatic antioxidant compounds has been also demonstrated in different plants, with subsequent reduction in oxidative damage in AM plants. More recently, the research activities are focussed on elucidation of how the AM symbiosis regulate plant aquaporins and the subsequent effects on plant water status and root hydraulic properties, under different osmotic stresses.

Biography Updated on 20 February 2012

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