Dr. Asunción Morte
Asunción Morte Gómez is Professor of Botany at the University of Murcia (UMU), where she leads the Mycology - Mycorrhiza - Plant Biotechnology research group. Her research focuses on the study of the biodiversity of ascomycete fungi known as "desert truffles" and the biological significance of their mycorrhizal symbiosis, the factors that control it, and what underlies plant-fungus interaction, making it more effective at the ecosystem level and in the face of climate change. She is the founder of Thader Biotechnology, a spin-off of the UMU, specializing in the cultivation of desert truffles and in biofertilizers based on fungi and bacteria. She is the principal investigator in 12 projects, has four six-year research periods, one six-year research transfer period, five five-year teaching periods, 111 scientific publications, 108 conference appearances, four books, and two patents.