Institute of Plant Sciences,
Agroecology and Natural Resources Department
Agricultural Research Organization – Volcani Institute
Interspecific Hybridization and Forest Resilience under Climate Change
Unlocking the adaptive potential of interspecific hybridization to build climate-resilient forests in semi-arid and Mediterranean environments. From foundational studies on pines and acacias to ongoing research on cypresses and terebinths, our lab integrates genomics and ecophysiology to identify robust genotypes for sustainable forestry.
Population Genetics and Conservation
Our lab specializes in forest tree genetics, population genomics, and conservation biology in Mediterranean ecosystems. We investigate the genetic diversity, spatial structure, and adaptive resilience of native tree species, focusing particularly on edge populations at the southernmost boundary of their global distribution. By combining high-throughput genomic sequencing with spatial GIS mapping and international partnerships, such as the Israeli Biodiversity Curation Center (IBCC) and the EU-funded MEDFORGEN project, we develop data-driven in situ and ex situ conservation strategies to preserve Mediterranean forest genetic resources.
Phytoremediation and Heavy Metals
Soil contamination with toxic heavy metals, such as cadmium, presents a major threat to agricultural sustainability, ecosystem health, and food safety. To overcome natural physiological bottlenecks and maximize phytoremediation capacity, our laboratory integrates tree genetics, molecular biology, and tree physiology. Our research strategy combines the constitutive overexpression of functional divalent metal transporters with CRISPR/Cas9-mediated silencing of negative regulatory genes.
As part of an interdisciplinary initiative with Prof. Tamir Klein and Dr. Yael Kiro from the Weizmann Institute of Science, our collaborative team combines molecular genetics, tree physiology, and isotopic tracing of soil and plants. Through controlled cadmium exposure trials on regenerated transgenic lines, we systematically quantify elemental uptake, tissue-specific accumulation, and overall remediation capacity.