PhD Research Project

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Development of a Rapid 'Point Of Care' Detection System for Major Diseases of Glasshouse Tomatoes

Institution:

University of Nottingham

Dept/School/Faculty:

School of Biosciences

PhD Supervisor:

Prof M Dickinson

Application Deadline:

No more applications being accepted

Funding Availability:

Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)

PhD Research Project

Diseases of plants are a major constraint to global food security causing losses estimated each year at around 10-15% of potential agricultural/horticultural yield and there are a number of diseases that pose a serious threat to the commercial tomato industry in the UK. We have been developing improved rapid ‘point-of-care’ diagnostics for a range of plant pathogens and beneficial non-pathogenic microbes. These include the use of small-scale micoarray technologies for monitoring the presence of multiple microbes simultaneously in a sample taken from a plant or water sample, and also the use of isothermal amplification techniques (e.g Lamp). In this project we will work with the tomato growers and ADAS to establish precisely which target organisms to include in the array and Lamp-based diagnostic systems, and to develop/validate assays for these pathogenic and non-pathogenic microbes. This will involve bioinformatics work to identify candidate sequences to design the diagnostic primers/probes against, and testing of culture samples and samples provided by growers to validate the diagnostics tests and confirm their specificity and reproducibility. The ultimate aims of this project are: Firstly to develop a lab-based array system that can be used to monitor semi-quantitatively for the presence of bacterial and fungal species (pathogens and non-pathogens) commonly found in tomato root and water systems. Secondly to develop a field-based Lamp diagnostic kit system that can be used to detect the presence of up to 12 separate pathogens (viral, bacterial and fungal) in a rapid test that growers can use in house as part of their routine monitoring for diseases. This project will therefore provide a training in both plant pathology and molecular diagnostics as well as providing a valuable set of diagnostic tools that will be of value to the horticultural industry for managing diseases and ensuring the continued sustainable production.

Funding Notes:

Award Start Date:……………October 1st 2012………………………………………………

Duration of Award: One year

Sponsor and collaborating body: UoN and HDC

Method by which candidates should apply: By email to matthew.dickinson@nottingham.ac.uk…Please include a covering letter, cv and names plus emails of two academic referees