Nicole van Dam

Scientist

Scientific Director Head of RG BIOTIC 2

Programm area BIOTIC Research group BIOTIC 2

As a chemical ecologist by training, I am interested in unraveling the chemical mechanisms underlying interactions of plants with their environment. Within this broad topic, I pursue three main research lines

1.           Interactions among and optimization of multiple stress responses, in particular between aboveground and belowground herbivores, via systemic induced responses

2.           Genomic and metabolomic analyses of interactions between plants, belowground feeding herbivores and their microbiome

3.           Ecology and evolution of metabolomic diversity in plants

 

The ultimate aim of my research is to better understand how plants have evolved the tremendous chemodiversity we observe today. In particular, I would like to understand how this has helped them to survive in a world full of herbivores, so we can apply this knowledge to create sustainable agrifood systems.


Academic qualifications



Postgraduate professional career



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