Profile
Antonino Malacrino
Biological Sciences
Adjunct Professor
Incoming Assistant Professor (Jan. 2025)
864-656-3057
Educational Background
Ph.D., Agriculture, University of Palermo (Italy), 2017
Profile/About Me
I’m a molecular ecologist mainly interested in plant microbiomes. My research is a blend of theory drawn from evolutionary biology, community ecology, and multitrophic interactions, combined with cutting-edge tools in molecular biology, experimental evolution, high-throughput sequencing, and high-performance computing to delve deep into the mechanisms governing the interplay between plants and their microbiomes. My research focuses on answering important fundamental questions: how do microbiomes influence plant ecology and evolution? Which are the rules behind the assembly of plant microbial communities? Can we assemble/evolve microbiomes to drive changes in plant functional traits?
Research Interests
– Plant genome – microbiome interactions
– Select and evolve microbiomes to implement novel functional traits
– Understanding the rules behind plant microbiomes assembly
– Do microbes help invasive species?
– Microbiomes influence plant evolution
– Plant-microbiome-insect interactions
Selected Publications
Malacrinò A, Bennett A (2024). Soil microbiota and herbivory drive the assembly of tomato plant-associated microbial communities through different mechanisms. Communications Biology. DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06259-6.
Zakaria Mohamed N, Schena L, Malacrinò A (2024). Lettuce seedlings rapidly assemble their microbiome from the environment through deterministic processes. Rhizosphere. DOI: 10.1016/j.rhisph.2024.100896.
Malacrinò A, Böttner L, Nouere S, Huber M, Schäfer M, Xu S (2024). Induced re- sponses contribute to rapid plant adaptation to herbivory. Communications Biology. DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05706-0.
Böttner L, Malacrinò A, Schulze CG, van Deenen N, Müller B, Xu S, Gershenzon J, Prüfer D, Huber M (2023). Natural rubber reduces herbivory and alters the microbiome below ground. New Phytologist. DOI: 10.1111/nph.18709.
Malacrinò A, Abdelfattah A, Berg G, Benitez MS, Bennett AE, Böttner L, Xu S, Schena L (2022). Exploring microbiomes for plant disease management. Biological Control. DOI: 10.1016/j.biocontrol.2022.104890. Invited paper.
Malacrinò A (2022).Host species identity shapes the diversity and structure of insect microbiota. Molecular Ecology. DOI: 10.1111/mec.16285. Harry Smith Prize 2023.
Malacrinò A, Wang M, Caul S, Karley AJ, Bennett AE (2021). Herbivory shapes the rhizosphere bacterial microbiota in potato plants. Environmental Microbiology Reports. DOI: 10.1111/1758-2229.12998.
Malacrinò A, Karley AJ, Schena L, Bennett AE (2021). Soil microbial diversity impacts plant microbiomes more than herbivory. Phytobiomes. DOI: 10.1094/PBIOMES-02-21-0011-R.
Vescio R, Malacrinò A, Bennett AE, Sorgonà A (2021). Single and combined abiotic stressors af- fect maize rhizosphere bacterial microbiota. Rhizosphere. DOI: 10.1016/j.rhisph.2021.100318.
Malacrinò A, Sadowski VA, Martin TK, Cavichiolli de Oliveira N, et al. (2020). Biological invasions alter environmental microbiomes: a meta-analysis. PLoS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0240996.
Honors and Awards
Harry Smith Prize 2023. This prize is awarded to the best paper published in Molecular Ecology or Molecular Ecology Resources during the previous year by an early-career scholar.
