Positions and education:

2023 – present Associate Head of School (Biology), School of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Plymouth

2021 – present Associate Professor of Plant and Fungal Biology, School of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Plymouth

2016 – 2021 Lecturer in Applied Biology and Programme Lead, School of Biological and Marine Sciences, University of Plymouth

2012 – 2016 Research Fellow, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter

2007 – 2012 Research Fellow, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter

2006 – 2007 Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Plant Science Group, IBLS, University of Glasgow

1999 – 2006 PhD, University of Glasgow

1994 – 1999 B.Sc.(Hons), Genetics (With Work Placement) University of Glasgow

Research interests:

Research in my group centres around plant-pathogen interactions and the use of complementary imaging modalities in plant stress biology. We focus on (1) understanding the cellular and molecular basis of rice blast disease and (2) non-invasive image-based diagnosis of plant disease and stress biology.

Rice blast fungus (Magnaporthe oryzae) kills enough rice each year to feed 60 million people. We are working to understand the basic processes of infection and use molecular and imaging-based techniques. We routinely use minimally invasive methods such as chlorophyll fluorescence imaging and confocal microscopy, which is allows us to explore in detail and with sensitivity, mechanisms of infection. In addition, we use molecular genetic manipulation (including CRISPR-Cas9) and image-based and molecular diagnostic techniques, which gives a complete toolkit to pursue a research programme in the whole organism and cell biology of plant pathogen interactions. 

Ongoing projects in the lab are (1) The role of the circadian clock in rice blast disease (Ciaran Griffin, UoP studentship), which has shown the importance of both the plant and fungal circadian clocks in determining disease outcome; (2) Fluorescence imaging for Nutrition and Disease (FIND) (Dr Naofel Aljafer and Mrs. Angela Harrop, ERDF, INTERREG funded), which is using plant chlorophyll imaging to give pre-symptomatic diagnosis of plant disease, which has implications for agriculture (3) The role of the chloroplast in plant immunity (Kokila Wickramanayake Pathirannahalage, PhD student).
In addition to our core research in plant pathology, the laboratory is also engaged in several funded collaborative projects (see grants and contracts).

Grants awarded since coming to University of Plymouth:

2024-2025  UoP Lead Investigator (with Dr Trevor Grigg, RNA Agribio and Dr. Tom Pope, Harper Adams) RNAi control of cabbage stem flea beetle. UKRI Innovate Farming Innovation Programme, Feasibility Round 3 (£208,000).

2024-2025   Knowledge Base Supervisor (with Prof. Mark Fitzsimons, UoP) Biostimulant formulations for agriculture in South Africa. UKRI Innovate African Agriculture KTP (£250,000).

2021-2023    Co- Investigator (with Dr. Kirsty Matthews Nicholass, Dr. Jon Ellis, Ciaran Griffin, PhD student, UoP) High-throughput screening to assist the genetic improvement of diverse fungi relevant to agriculture. Seale-Hayne Educational Trust (£7,323).

2021 - 2023   Co-Investigator (PI, Professor Mark Fitzsimons, UoP) INTERREG "Recon Soil"

2021 - 2024    Co-Investigator (PI, Dr Jon Ellis, UoP), Wherefore the magic? Investigating the origin of psychedelic compounds in nature. Levehulme Trust

2020 - 2024   Co-Investigator (PI, Professor Richard Thompson FRS., UoP) BIO-PLASTIC-RISK "Biodegradable Bioplastics – Assessing Environmental Risk" ID: NE/V007556/1, NERC

2020 - 2022   Co- Investigator (with Ciaran Griffin, PhD student) The metabolic inhibition of sporulation in the rice blast pathogen, Magnaporthe oryzae. Seale-Hayne Educational Trust.

2018 - 2021   Principal Investigator Agritech Cornwall, FIND Project: Image-based early diagnosis of plant health. European Regional Development Fund.

2018 - 2020    Principal Investigator (with Dr Will Vevers) Investigating the biocontrol of fungal pathogens using epiphytic bacteria from Abies nordmanniana. Seale-Hayne Educational Trust.

2017 - 2019   Principal Investigator Multi-scale imaging of pathogen-chloroplast interaction during rice blast disease progression. Seale-Hayne Educational Trust.

2017 - 2021    Principal Investigator / PhD Supervisor The role of circadian entrainment in rice blast disease. Faculty of Science and Engineering, Plymouth University.

External examiner:

2024     External Examiner PhD Megan Lewis, University of Warwick, UK

2023     External Examiner PhD Ana Lozano, University of Alicante, Spain

2020     University of Glasgow PhD external examiner

2020, 2021 University of Exeter MRes external examiner

Invited lectures:

2023  Research seminar (via Zoom), Rajarata University, Sri Lanka

2022  Research seminar (via Zoom), University of Basrah, Iraq

2022  Research seminar (via Zoom), University of Kent, UK

2020  Research seminar (via Zoom), University of Arkansas, USA

2020  Research seminar (via Zoom), University of Alicante, Spain

2019  Invited talk, GARNet Workshop: Advances in Plant Imaging, University of Warwick, UK.

2018  Research seminar, University of York, UK

2017  Research seminar, University of Warwick, UK

2016  Research seminar, University of Alicante, Spain

2016  Invited lecture series on advanced imaging, University of Alicante, Spain

2015  Research seminar, University of Durham, UK.

2015  Research seminar, Centre for Plant Integrative Biology, University of Nottingham, UK.

2015  12th New Phytologist workshop “The apoplast as battleground for plant–microbe interactions” Gießen, Germany.

2015  Research seminar, Institute of Phytomedicine, University of Bonn, Germany.

2014  Society for Experimental Biology President’s Medallist Talk (Education & PublicAffairs), Main Meeting, Manchester, UK.

2014  Society for Experimental Biology, Careers Talk, SEB Main Meeting, Manchester, UK.

Conferences organised:

2017            Co-chair, Light-sheet microscopy,  RMS MMC Meeting , Manchester, UK

2017            Co-chair, Imaging pathogenesis in plants, SEB Main Meeting , Gothenburg, Sweden

2017            Co-chair, The research and teaching nexus, SEB Main Meeting , Gothenburg, Sweden

2016           Chair, Science with Impact Plenary Session, SEB Main Meeting , Brighton, UK

2015            Co-chair, Innovations in undergraduate teaching Session, SEB Main Meeting , Prague, Czech Republic

2014               Lead applicant and co-organiser:“Undergraduates never do anything useful” Workshop, University of Exeter. (ASPB blog post covering the event here: http://blog.aspb.org/2014/04/28/research-led-teaching-opportunities-for-early-career-researchers/)

2012            Co-organiser, How to be a Great Teacher workshop, International Conference on Arabidopsis Research , Vienna, Austria

2011 – 2016       Co-organiser, Exeter Imaging Network

2018 – present Member, British Society for Plant Pathology

2016 – present Member, International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions

2014 – present Fellow, Royal Microscopical Society ( 2010– 2014, Ordinary Member)  

2013 – present Fellow, Higher Education Academy (2010-2014, Associate Fellow)                     

2012 – 2016 Member, American Society of Plant Biologists

2010 – present Member, European Microscopy Society 

2010 – present Member, Society for Experimental Biology (President's Medallist, EPA, 2014)

2024-present Council Member, Agricultural Universities Council.

2024 - present Plant Section Chair, Council Member & trustee, Society for Experimental Biology 

2016 BBSRC Bioimaging Review Group    

2015 – 2018 SEB+ Section Chair, Council Member & trustee, Society for Experimental Biology 

I am currently Director of Studies for 2 PhD students:

Mrs. Kokila Wickramanayake Pathirannahalage (https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/staff/kokila-wickramanayake-pathirannahalage) who is working on chloroplastic changes in response to pathogen challenge.

Ms. Peggy McGroary (https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/people/peggy-mcgroary) who is working with Dr. Dana Macgregor on control of gene expression in weeds using VIGS and VOX.

and one ResM student:

Mr. Mohit Biju who is working on an interdisciplinary project on nematode infections of scented narcissi with growers on the Isles of Scilly.

I enjoy teaching and have a particular interest in research-led teaching. I currently teach on several plant and molecular biology modules in all undergraduate stages and lead the final year module, BIOL301(Z) Plant Biotechnology: Lectures on plant biotechnology, synthetic biology. Workshops on socioeconomic and ethical aspects, gene mining and GM/GE strategy.

Awards

2020     University of Plymouth UPSU SSTAR Award – Sensational Programme Lead (FoSE), Environmental Biotechnology

2014     Society for Experimental Biology President’s Medal (Education and Public Affairs).

2013 – 14 Exeter University Merit Award

2012 – 13  Exeter University Merit Award

2010     European Biophysics Award: 1st Prize for a presentation at the Società Italiana di Fisica International School of Physics “Enrico Fermi” CLXXVII Course “Advanced Methods in Optical Fluorescence Microscopy Towards Nanoscopy”

2007 – 08 Exeter University Merit Award

1999          Pontecorvo Prize in Genetics (Graduating class 1st prize), University ofGlasgow

I regularly review manuscripts for a range of scientific journals and grant and fellowship applications for UKRI, Leverhulme, FCT etc