Molecular responses of crops to a changing environment: lessons from the past

Discovered in 1950, Tularosa Cave, New Mexico, was used as a rock shelter by an ancient Native American culture. The cave was very dry and so beautifully preserved tens of thousands of artefacts from the peoples who occupied the site for approximately 2000 years, from the third to first millennium before present. The cave contained large numbers of exceptionally well-preserved, desiccated maize cobs that originate across the full span of the site’s occupation. The regional climate record points to periodic droughts, some of which were severe. The corn types change over the span of the cave’s occupation, consistent with selection of varieties appropriate to the local conditions and the best nutritional returns.

These maize cob finds represent a time capsule offering a unique opportunity to investigate the effects of drought on an important food crop and giving us the chance to address a critical modern question about resilience of our food chain to environmental hazard.

The student will gain experience in state-of-the-art organic and isotopic mass spectrometric techniques, using metabolomic and isotopic analysis approaches, and to apply these to the archaeological materials. Metabolomic analysis will reveal the small molecules whose accumulation/depletion reflect the crop’s response to drought, while isotope analysis will reveal the details of the climatic conditions at the time the cobs were produced.

The successful applicant will be appointed principally in the Department of Chemistry, but will also have a home in the Department of Archaeology, and will be a member of BioArCh, our interdisciplinary collaborative research facility formed at York by the Archaeology, Biology and Chemistry Departments. The student will be trained in the York Centre of Excellence in Mass Spectrometry as well as in BioArCh, and will develop an enviable range of expertise in modern analytical methods, that will be applied to the analysis of this unique set of archaeological plant samples. Experience in interpretation of the results of the analytical techniques will be gained and an understanding developed of the broader meaning of the plant metabolomics data and the light isotope results in terms of palaeoenvironments. The student will develop an appreciation for the implications of their results in predicting and mitigating the effects of climate change.

In addition to working with the two York primary supervisors, support by and collaboration with Dr Logan Kistler (University of Warwick and Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC) will further broaden the training and experience this project offers, by including exposure to ancient DNA analysis.

Supervisors can only put forward one student for consideration per project. Shortlisting will take place as soon as possible after the closing date and successful applicants will be notified promptly. The interviews will take place at the University of York on in February 2017. Video interviews can be arranged for international applicants. As part of the interview process, candidates may be asked to make a 10 minute presentation on a research project they have undertaken.

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