Laura Armbruster

Laura Armbruster is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Plant Sciences, University of Cologne, affiliated with CEPLAS (Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences). She conducts research on plant-microbe interactions with a focus on endophytic fungi.

Her primary research interests include:

• Endophytic fungi colonization mechanisms
• Regulation of fungal effector proteins
• Transcriptional control in fungus-plant interactions
• Plant defense against pathogens

Dr. Armbruster specializes in studying Serendipita indica and Serendipita vermifera, which establish beneficial relationships with plant hosts by promoting growth and providing protection against pathogens like Bipolaris sorokiniana. Her current research investigates how these fungi regulate effector protein expression during host colonization and competition with other microorganisms.

Her methodology involves analyzing time-resolved transcriptional profiles of fungus-host interactions to identify co-regulated effector clusters, followed by DAP-seq to pinpoint controlling transcription factors. Experimental validation includes generating null-mutants and overexpression lines to demonstrate functional importance.

She is part of the research group associated with the website ag-zuccaro.botanik.uni-koeln.de, working within CEPLAS Research Area 2: 'Plant Microbiota Metabolic Networks and Edaphic Adaptation'.