Pioneering microbial genetic rescue for mangroves to enable trait-level biobanking and gene editing in Southeast Asia.
Mangroves in Malaysia
Team & Partners: Drs. Norfarrah Mohamed Alipiah & Natrah Ikhsan (Universiti Putra Malaysia), Department of Fisheries Malaysia, Innoqua Asia
Challenge: Malaysia’s mangroves are being destabilized by rising temperatures, salinity shifts, and aquaculture-driven stress, with no tools currently in place to preserve or enhance their genetic resilience.
Approach: Map resilience-associated microbial traits across environmental gradients, establish a microbial biobank of climate-relevant strains, conduct stress assays to validate genotype-phenotype links, and test proof-of-concept CRISPR-based editing of key stress-response regulators.
Anticipated outcomes: “Microbial Genetic Rescue Toolkit” including a resilience-associated gene panel, curated biobank of climate-relevant strains, genotype–phenotype dataset under climate stress, and practitioner-ready guidance for integrating microbial trait stability into restoration planning.
