DIADE, Plant Diversity, Adaptation and Development

DIADE research projects are aimed at understanding the nature and roles of various mechanisms underlying: - the structural and functional diversification of the genome of tropical plants, - the diversity and structure of their populations during the speciation process, and - the adaptation to environmental or human-driven changes.

The teams of unit DIADE involved in the CultiVar project include :

  • Cereal root Systems (CERES). The team brings together researchers from the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) and the University of Montpellier (UM). Its work aims at understanding the mechanisms controling root architecture in cereals using rice and pearl millet as experimental models. We also compare these mechanisms with those occuring in the model dicotyledonous plant Arabidopsis thaliana to understand the evolution of root system development in plants. The CERES team develops its activities in tight link with the LMI LAPSE in Dakar, Senegal and the LMI RICE in Hanoi Vietnam.
  • Flower to fruit - Palm Trees (F2F).The team aims at understanding the key processes governing flower and fruit development, such as floral induction and flower morphogenesis, sex determination, fruit maturation and abscission. Indeed, these key stages of reproductive development are of paramount importance for the control of the qualitative and quantitative aspects of fruit production in a context of environmental changes.
  • Anthropisation and dynamics of plant genetic diversity (DYNADIV). DYNADIV conducts researches on agro-bio diversity of plants. Different plant species from large botanic groups are studied, like palms and annonaceae, but also important food crops and their wild relatives, such as pennisetum, yam, coffea, fonio, and rice.
  • Rice, Interspecies Comparison & Evolution (RICE). RICE team's activities are focused on biological questions in relation to interspecific hybrids in rice and the identification and transfer of genes of interest.