Chemical biology to defend crops: Disrupting the protein interactions pathogens use to invade plants. (BEEKMAN_U26DTP)

With the human population projected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, the looming challenge of feeding the rapidly growing population is threatened by plant pathogens, which cause significant losses in crop yield each year. Battling plant disease is essential for sustainable agriculture and global food security, and new avenues are required to address this challenge. Pathogens invade plant cells and hijack proteins that control protein synthesis, bending these processes to support pathogen growth.

This project aims to target the protein-protein interactions that pathogens use to invade plant hosts. The appointed student will design, synthesise, and test compounds which specifically prevent essential protein-protein interactions used by pathogens to cause disease in plant hosts. An innovative platform, developed in the supervisor’s lab, will be used to design peptides and small molecules that can disrupt the formation of protein complexes that facilitate disease. This interdisciplinary chemical biology and plant biology project will involve training in cutting-edge science including computational design and peptide/small molecule synthesis, as well as evaluation of the compounds for binding to proteins and their disease inhibitory activity in plants.

Led by Dr Andrew Beekman and Professor Wenbo Ma, there is an opportunity to learn medicinal chemistry/chemical biology, protein biochemistry, cellular biology, and plant biology, using facilities across the School of Chemistry, Pharmacy and Pharmacology and The Sainsbury Laboratory. The student will be based in a highly collaborative research environment with a strong commitment to excellent in science and professional development.

This project will develop a multidisciplinary scientist with expertise from chemical to cell biology. You will have, or expect to obtain a first class, 2(i) or equivalent Honours degree in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Chemistry, or a related area.

Informal enquiries are welcomed: Dr Andrew Beekman (a.beekman@uea.ac.uk) or Professor Wenbo Ma (Wenbo.Ma@tsl.ac.uk).