Submitted by Mary WILDERMUTH on
Powdery mildews are obligate fungal biotrophs that infect a wide variety of agriculturally important plants.
As an obligate biotroph, the powdery mildew can only grow on living plant tissue and gets all its nutrients from the plant.
The Wildermuth Lab is investigating the mechanisms by which the powdery mildew manipulates plant metabolism to get the nutrients it requires. By limiting nutrient availability to the powdery mildew, we can then reduce the extent of powdery mildew disease on plants.
The students will help a postdoctoral fellow determine whether novel plant targets that alter plant metabolism enhance powdery mildew resistance.
The undergraduates will assist a postdoctoral fellow in this research. They will develop expertise in plant molecular biology and genetics, biochemistry, and plant-pathogen interactions.
The postdoc will train the undergraduate and facilitate their development as independent scientists.
The undergraduates should be highly organized, detail-oriented, and committed. The undergraduate must be able to allocate at least 9 hours per week to this research.
Coursework: Bio 1A (required), MCB102 Biochemistry (preferred)
Additional: Interest in plants, host-microbe interactions, fungi