M.E. Seminar - Dr. Maya Kleiman - Volkani Institute 12.1.26

Uncovering the role of physical forces in plant-environment interactions using biomimetics
Dr. Maya Kleiman

Volcani Institute

Monday, January 12th at 14:00

Wolfson Building of Mechanical Engineering,

Room 206

Abstrct:
The interaction between physical forces and biological systems is a unifying principle across organisms, yet the in the field of plantenvironment interfaces it remains a relatively underexplored frontier. This work integrates biomimetics, materials science, plant pathology and development to isolate and quantify the influence of different physical properties on microbial behavior and plant development. We demonstrate that plant surface microstructure and mechanics dictate pathogen and commensal behavior. Using biomimetic surfaces, we isolate physical cues from chemical signals, revealing that leaf topography significantly controls the distribution, germination rate, and virulence-initiating biofilm formation of pathogens like Botrytis cinerea (grey mold) and Pectobacterium (soft rot). These findings highlight an essential, often overlooked, mechanism in plant resistance and offer a novel, physics-based framework for agricultural control. Extending this approach, we developed a novel root mimic system using bio-based polymers to replicate the microstructural and biochemical complexity of the root surface. This system is currently being used to elucidate how surface physical properties influence the penetration of devastating soilborne pathogens, such as Root Knot Nematodes (RKN). Finally, we explore how mechanical cues govern plant morphogenesis and development. Our analysis of Arabidopsis callus growth reveals that media compressibility is the dominant factor dictating phenotypic differences during in vitro plant regeneration. This research links the mesoscale mechanics of the growth environment directly to cellular differentiation and developmental outcomes, suggesting new strategies for controlling plant tissue engineering and micropropagation. Collectively, this research illustrates the profound role of multiscale mechanics in fundamental plant biology and demonstrates the power of bio-inspired synthetic systems to decouple complex environmental factors.

Bio:

Dr. Maya Kleiman is a Research Scientist at the The Agricultural Research Organization (Volcani Institute), Institute of Plant Sciences, where she leads pioneering research at the interface of plant science and material engineering. Her work focuses on building synthetic systems to study plant-environment interactions, specifically how the physical properties of plant surfaces dictate the behavior of microorganisms and how the media physical properties influence the development of plant tissues. Dr. Kleiman holds a diverse multidisciplinary background, with a B.Sc. in Biochemistry and Mathematics and an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from the Technion. She earned her Ph.D. in Mathematical Biology from Ben-Gurion University before completing a postdoctoral fellowship in Bio-Inspired Materials at the University of California, Irvine. This unique combination of disciplines allows her team to build synthetic systems that precisely decouple physical cues from chemical signals in biological interactions.