Antonio Granell

INTERVIEW WITH Antonio Granell

Antonio Granell Richart is a Research Professor at the Institute of Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP), which is a Mixed Institute of the CSIC with the Polytechnic University of Valencia, and the director of the Department of Plant Genomics and Biotechnology. The interests of his research group are focused on studying how fruits grow and ripen, with an emphasis on the metabolic routes governing the production of healthy compounds in fruits, and also of those compounds that provide good flavour. They mainly use tomato, which is a model of fleshy fruit, and all the approaches available: genomic genetics, natural variability, reverse genetics, etc.

Could you tell us the reason for and duration of your visit?

It is a meeting for the revision of a European project that I coordinate, in which we will try to convince the European Commission that during the first months we have made a good use of the funding we received.

Do you come to Brussels often?

Not very often. Two or three times a year.

The project you coordinate, “Traditom: Traditional tomato varieties and cultural practices”, funded by H2020, what stage is it in and what are the goals it pursues?

We are right at the mid-point of the project. Its main objective is to provide the producers with a solid scientific basis on the traditional varieties of tomato available. In this first stage of the project we managed to gather more than 1500 varieties of traditional European tomatoes and we already began its genotypic and phenotypic characterisation, with characteristics of the plant, but mostly of the fruit. We started to analyse its metabolites, nutrients and compounds related to health or flavour. Many of these activities have been carried out in very close collaboration with local producers in different countries of Southern Europe.

I see that researcher María Luz López Terrada, from Ingenio, an expert in Social History of Science, is part of the “Traditom” committee. Is her participation in the project an example of transversal inclusion of Human and Social Sciences? What do you think about this novelty of H2020?

Well, I believe all projects benefit from multidisciplinarity and moving towards the multi-actor concept. It may make their coordination difficult, but if this is achieved and properly managed, it can lead to interesting interactions. The participation of Mari Luz is being very interesting, not only because she provides an important aspect that needs to be tackled with rigour, which is how the tomato was introduced in Europe, but she also proposes new questions; for instance, it would be interesting to check if the genetic analysis of the different varieties and their geographical distribution shows in some way how the tomato appeared and diversified in Europe.

From the experience you have gained as a coordinator of European projects, what advices would you give to someone who is going to coordinate a project of this character for the first time?

It is essential to create a good committee and to have a good work plan that considers every single aspect of the call.

These are very competitive calls and there cannot be any loose ends. The coordinator will need all the help that his/her organisation can provide. At the same time, once the project has been accepted, it is important to have a management structure that allows to perform a good follow-up, help the least experienced participants, and detect discrepancies so these can be corrected in time. Again, having this assisted management is very important for us, the scientists, to be able to focus on what we are most prepared for: scientific matters.

Do you have any other on-going projects funded by the European Union?

Yes. I participate in another H2020 project: TomGEM SFS05-2015A holistic multi-actor approach towards the design of new tomato varieties and management practices to improve yield and quality in the face of climate change”, and an Erasmus+ to create a European-Moroccan Masters degree in Biotechnology.

With respect to the next Framework Programme of Research and Innovation, what aspect –administrative or regarding your specific scientific area– do you think that is currently inappropriately tackled, or is not even included, and should be considered?

I think that the complexity of proposals should be lightened so that everybody can focus more on the scientific aspects. And, regarding the topics, I think that Europe should take a step forward and call for grants for the incorporation and demonstration of genetic editing technologies.

We cannot stay behind in this technological revolution.

Lastly, why the tomato?

It is a fleshy fruit model. What we learn from it should be applicable to other fruits. Fruits are essential for a healthy diet, which is something that we, Europeans, still need.