The focus of my Master's Thesis work was on the ability of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to help their plant symbionts deal with salinity stress. I studied a mixture of native, invasive, and agricultural legumes in south Florida with a particular focus on the pine rockland ecosystem.
During my thesis tenure I had the opportunity to visit ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) in Hyderabad, India. There I helped to study the impact of various field conditions on rhizobial bacteria and their symbiosis with crop legumes.
(pictured left)
A component of my thesis work is published here:
Scharnagl K, Sanchez V, von Wettberg E (2018) The impact of salinity on mycorrhizal colonization of a rare legume, Galactia smallii, in South Florida pine rocklands. BMC Research Notes 11:2