As the cherry on top, the final paper from the Myco Grape project has been published in the prestigious journal Microbiological Research. This study focuses on the second experiment of the Myco Grape project, in which we explored the role of a common mycorrhizal network in transmitting information about viral infection between neighboring grapevines. Our research revealed interesting insights into the physiological changes occurring in healthy plants that are indirectly connected to infected ones through beneficial mycorrhizal fungi. You can find more details about the study here.

On June 9th, 2025, Emanuel Gaši successfully defended his doctoral dissertation titled “The effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on virus-infected grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.)” With the successful defense, Emanuel earned the title of Doctor of Science (PhD). The full version of the dissertation is available through the Dabar repository. Congratulations to Emanuel and his mentor, Tomislav!

In addition to in vitro grapevine cultivation techniques, Emanuel has been involved in numerous other types of scientific activities and has strengthened his collaboration with the exceptional team from Turin, led by Giorgio Gambino, with whom the collaboration will certainly continue. As an inexperienced doctoral student at the beginning of his scientific career, this opportunity that the Croatian Science Foundation offers to all assistants in Croatia represents a unique opportunity to expand his knowledge, but also to develop valuable acquaintances and collaborations that are essential for personal and professional development.

A message to all young doctoral students/assistants: If you have the opportunity to apply for a short-term mobility offered by the Croatian Science Foundation, take advantage of it because this is a rare opportunity for significant progress and scientific maturation! Ci vediamo 🙂

Join us for an informative seminar on the topic of the interaction of grapevines with viruses and mycorrhizal fungi, where Emanuel will present the results of the MycoGrape project as well as his activity at the Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection, where he learns the basics of in vitro cultivation of virus-free grapevines for use in future research in grapevine interactions with pathogenic and beneficial microorganisms.

Access link: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/784a4f53-edb0-489f-8733-83ff6813c026@34c64e9f-d27f-4edd-a1f0-1397f0c84f94

In addition to the skills acquired in isolating explants and planting them on nutrient media, Emanuel also acquired other skills necessary for in vitro cultivation of grapevines. Thus, the procedure for maintaining and propagating grapevines as well as their gradual acclimatization to outdoor conditions was learned.

At the Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection, Emanuel is actively learning parts of the grapevine tissue culture protocol. Starting with familiarization with the protocols, laboratory equipment and the preparation of different types of nutrient media for stimulating the development of callus and embryos from the anthers and ovaries from grapevine inflorescence. In Turin, the correct method of sampling, storing and sterilizing of grapevine inflorescences has also been learned. From such inflorescences, a large number of anthers and ovaries will be isolated on a nutrient medium for callus induction.

Somatic embryogenesis is the process of developing embryos from cells that are not produced by the fusion of gametes, but have been differentiated into a somatic cells. In this case, in vitro development of an embryo from anthers/ovaries involves the dedifferentiation of the cell into a totipotent cell that gradually differentiates into callus tissue, and then an embryo from which a new plant develops.