Prof. Asaph Aharoni

The term ‘METABOLOME’ describes the complement of all metabolites expressed in a cell, tissue or organism during its lifetime. We aim at understanding how plants make and regulate a tremendous diversity of small molecules and the role of these chemicals in plant-environmental interactions (e.g. pigments, antifungal, bacterial, herbivory metabolites and systemic signaling molecules). We study plant metabolites and their impact on above ground interactions mediated through the plant outer surface layers as well below ground in roots, their secretions and interactions with rhizosphere organisms. Experiments are conducted both indoors and recently outdoors, in nature using genome edited plants.