People
Miguel de Lucas
Group Leader
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6544-6404
I did my PhD under Prof. Salomé Prat (CNB-CSIC, https://prat-lab.webnode.com) supervision studying the crosstalk between environment and hormone signalling. Then, I moved to Davis (CA-USA) to learn about transcriptional networks and chromatin regulation at Dr. Siobhan Brady’s lab (https://www.bradylab.org). I started my lab in Durham, UK in 2015. I am passionate of plant development, its genomic regulation and love working in the lab and the challenges we face every day.
Shraboni Ghosh
Postdoctoral Researcher
Unlike animals, plants are sessile in nature. Therefore, as a researcher, I am always interested in exploring different pathways that can protect plants during unfavorable conditions. I have been passionate about exploring the intricacies of plants ever since I went to NIPGR (National Institute of Plant Genome Research, India), which has led to some significant findings during my Ph.D. My doctoral experience involved characterization of Protein L-isoAspartyl Methyltransferase (PIMT), a protein repairing enzyme, essential for restricting deleterious covalent modifications (isoAspartate residues) in proteins. I have discovered a novel side of this enzyme in regulating protein homeostasis during abiotic stress. I also demonstrated that antioxidative enzymes are vulnerable in nature and are repaired by PIMT during stressful conditions.
Laila Dabab
Postdoctoral Researcher
Bioinformatics is a fascinating science to explore and use in predicting, manipulating data and discovering hiding links to make a whole picture clearer. From different databases like NCBI, TIR, and EBML to different program languages like R, Shell, Python and Linux as an operating system, still eager and love to learn and use all that knowledge to tell new stories and make different perspectives of view on how cells genes and proteins interact with each other in plants, especially wheat and Arabidopsis. In my PhD, I played with the hexaploidy wheat with enormous genome size (16 Gb), did some predictions of new genes related to abiotic stress like salinity and drought and developed new primers related to tolerant genes for those abiotic stress. Now in the Postdoc research with the fabulous supervisor, Miguel, I started to deep into the newest Arabidopsis Atlas, and infer the relationship between chromatin genes, for structure and modification, in the root with different time zones and cell types
Yuqi Li
Postdoctoral Researcher
The root system of higher plants is essential for plant life, as it provides anchorage in the soil and access to nutrients and water. It arises from a population of long-lasting stem cells residing in a structure called root apical meristem (RAM) at the tip of the root. Therefore, elucidation of the molecular signaling pathway of root stem cells is of great importance to understand the basic principles underlying root differentiation and development in plants. I have been explored the involvement of epigenetic modification in the regulation of plant development during my Ph.D. (China Agricultural University). Therefore I will integrate the two modules of chromatin modification and plant hormones to uncover the molecular mechanism of root stem cell differentiation and development
Ashish Chauhan
DTP-PhD Student
I completed my masters at UAS, Dharwad, India where my work was focused on molecular plant breeding area. There I studied how genetic variations in natural accessions govern different traits of plants and how these variations can be identified (mapped as genes and QTLs on chromosomes) and utilized in crop improvement programmes using marker-assisted breeding approach. After completing masters, I became curious to find out how various genes and QTLs are being regulated or what factors decides their timing and expression. That opportunity I found in Dr. Aashish Ranjan lab (NIPGR, India) where I studied the role of Phytochrome-Interacting Factors (PIFs), an important family of transcription factors, widely characterized in light signaling pathway, however completely unknown under abiotic stress signaling. There I came up with a finding that PIFs target ABA pathway genes and regulates drought tolerance of plant. Further, understanding the precise mechanisms and interactions between PIFs in environmental signal crosstalk is my future interest.
Yutcelia Galviz Fajardo
Visiting researcher (University of Pelotas – Brazil)
Plants are able to survive in a changing environment. Some of these changes are not predictable and can cause stress in plants, and they can even be repeated over time. Understanding how past stress events can affect plant growth, development, and defense responses is the main objective of my PhD thesis that I am currently doing at the Federal University of Pelotas (Brazil). My area of study is the memory of stress in rice plants subjected to recurrent abiotic stimuli. To understand the complex mechanisms underlying memory, I seek to integrate physiological, biochemical and epigenetics approaches.
Beth Molloy
Mbiol student (2021/2022)
Plants present a unique system of study; their modular, plastic development blurs the boundary between developmental biology and environmental response. I am interested in the ways plants sense, integrate, and respond to endogenous and environmental information to make development decisions, and how this can be harnessed to tackle challenges to global food security. My Master’s project will focus on establishing a role for the DOF6 transcription factor in promoting endocycle in the root elongation zone. Following this, I aim to undertake a PhD in molecular plant science, with a focus on signal transduction, stress response and development.
Outside of the lab, I am passionate about STEM education. I have taken part in many educational/outreach projects and taught over 600 Science and Maths lessons. Throughout my career, I will continue to support those who do not currently feel empowered to participate in STEM settings.
Follow me on Twitter @B_Mol_
Gina Vong
Summer student (2021)
As global primary producers which possess the world’s most effective carbon capture technology, plants are key to tackling both the climate change and global food security crises. In this rapidly changing world, it is increasingly important to understand plants’ response to environment. My interests span all areas of plant environmental interaction, from molecular pathways through to biotic interactions, development, crop improvement and ecosystem dynamics. Plant survival mechanisms are exquisite in their elegance and I want to study them from every angle.
Outside the lab, I am an enthusiastic musician who plays too many instruments.
Wiki Fatz
Summer student (2021)
I’m a third year Durham student going on to do a Masters in plant biology. My interest in plants grew after having the realisation of how pivotal they are, and after learning how they cope with stress. As sessile organisms, it’s intriguing how well they adapt to their environment and how their molecular biology has evolved alongside. Also, it’s exciting that new plant molecular biology techniques are emerging, and I’m looking forward to exploring their limitations in my Masters and a later research career.
George Woodward
MBiol student (2020-2021)
My MBiol project aims to functionally characterise the role of the C2C2-DOF transcription factors in the regulation of lateral root development. I am really eager about the opportunity to help further our understanding of how this post-embryonic process is controlled. But most of all I am just excited to get back in the lab and carry out some hands-on science! Following my MBiol I am hoping to stay rooted in plant biology by pursuing a PhD, with personal interests in both development and stress tolerance at the molecular level. Outside of my work, I like to listen to music, play the guitar, and spend as much time in the outdoors as possible
Joseph Nelson
PhD student
Naomi Peak
MBiol student (2019/20)
My MBiol project will focus on the regulation of chromatin dynamics by brassinosteroids: a class of phytohormones which control plant development, biotic and abiotic stress responses, and growth. I’m excited to have the ability to make my own contribution to the field and to gain the skills I will need to further my career in science, wherever it takes me. When I’m not in the lab I enjoy drawing, listening to music, and karaoke.
Chris West
MRes student (2018/19)
Yixuan Dong
Summer student (2019)
Huazhong Agricultural University (HAU),
Wuhan, China
Chuanping Zhao
Summer student (2019)
Huazhong Agricultural University (HAU),
Wuhan, China
Geoff Cobb
MBiol student (2018/19)
My MBiol project has focused on how chromatin configuration regulates the seedling de-etiolation process in Arabidopsis. I am looking forward to pursuing a PhD in plant development, specifically looking at how abiotic stress affects intercellular signalling. In my free time, I enjoy growing plants in my room (as many as I can keep) and fishing!
Lauren Griffiths
MBiol (2017-18)
Grace Brewer
MRes (2016-17)
MDL lab 