Enrique Monte

Enrique Monte is a Spanish plant microbiologist and academic. He is a professor of microbiology at the University of Salamanca.

Monte's research concerns functional genomics, Trichoderma-plant interactions, and heritable plant defense mechanisms. He was awarded the Severo Ochoa Prize by the Prince of Asturias Foundation in 1999.

Education Monte graduated with a degree in Pharmacy from the University of Seville in 1982. In 1986, he completed a Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Salamanca.

Career Monte started his academic career at the University of Salamanca, where he was appointed an assistant professor in 1983 and associate professor in 1991. Since 2007, he has been a university professor at the Institute for Agrobiotechnology Research at the University of Salamanca. During this time, he also directed a postgraduate course at the University of Buenos Aires. In 1998, he founded the biotechnology company NBT.

Research Monte's research on Trichoderma focused on developing and applying isoenzyme analysis and gene sequencing techniques to distinguish morphologically similar strains within the T. harzianum species complex that possess biocontrol potential against pathogenic fungi. He further investigated the enzymatic activities of different Trichoderma strains involved in biocontrol mechanisms against nematodes and insects.

Monte also demonstrated that Trichoderma stimulates the expression of plant genes associated with salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic acid (JA), and ethylene (ET) production, though at higher inoculum levels, it can alter this balance by suppressing SA-dependent defenses and enhancing JA, ET, and auxin pathways. His work also indicated that Trichoderma can promote plant development by influencing the phytohormonal balance to enhance growth and immunity. Monte proposed that the growth enhancement and disease resistance conferred by Trichoderma can be inherited by plants through sustained interactions with the fungus.

Together with colleagues, he found that Trichoderma induces defense responses in tomato plants under biotic and abiotic stress by upregulating SA- and JA/ET-dependent defense pathways. His research also emphasized that SA functions as a key phytohormone barrier, preventing Trichoderma from colonizing the plant's vascular bundles.

In a collaborative study, Monte reported that T. harzianum enhances the association between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and non-host Brassicaceae roots, improving plant productivity. Similarly, Trichoderma strains were shown to effectively control Verticillium decay in olive plants.

Monte also identified that endopolygalacturonase (ThPG1) produced by T. harzianum releases damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) signals, which can act as initiators to strengthen Trichoderma-induced systemic resistance in plants. Furthermore, his studies observed that Trichoderma produces phytohormones such as ABA, CKs, GAs, SA, ET, and auxin in a strain-specific manner, and that their combined action enhances both plant growth and defense responses.

Awards and honors 1999 – Severo Ochoa Prize, Prince of Asturias Foundation 2024 – World’s Top 2% Scientists, Stanford University

Selected articles