Project description

Like animals, plants get sick, but they have an immune system to fight back against infection. Plant diseases are a threat to food production and a constraint on achieving food security against the background of a changing climate and the need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Understanding how the plant immune system works, and how it could be engineered, offers new opportunities to protecting crops and securing high yielding harvests in a sustainable way. A key component of plants’ immune systems are intracellular receptors that detect the presence of pathogen signatures to initiate a reponse.

Recently, a new class of intracellular plant immune receptors, the “tandem kinase proteins” are repeatedly being identified in screens for resistance to disease in important cereal crops like barley and wheat. Several of these new immune receptors contain unusual protein regions that likely directly bind pathogen molecules called “effectors”. Currently, we understand very little about the mechanisms of how these receptor domains bind effectors and how this leads to an immune response. This project will investigate the biochemical, structural, and in planta mechanisms that underpin immune recognition by these proteins, and how they could be engineered to expand or otherwise improve their use in agriculture. Our target for developing new disease resistance is the most devastating fungal disease of cereals, Blast (caused the pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae). The studentship will involve techniques including molecular biology, biochemistry, structural biology, AI-led computational design, in planta assays, and plant pathology. There will opportunities to work with national and international collaborators.

The student will receive expert training in diverse disciplines on a strategically relevant topic, within a stimulating research environment. They will join a team of researchers with shared interests and have access to world-class facilities. Further, it is expected they will attend national/international conferences to present their research.

The Norwich Research Park Biosciences Doctoral Training Programme (NRPDTP) is offering fully funded studentships for October 2026 entry. The programme offers postgraduates the opportunity to undertake a 4-year PhD research project whilst enhancing professional development and research skills through a comprehensive training programme. You will join a vibrant community of world-leading researchers. All NRPDTP students undertake a three-month professional internship placement (PIPS) during their study. The placement offers exciting and invaluable work experience designed to enhance professional development. Full support and advice will be provided by our Professional Internship team.

This project has been shortlisted for funding by the NRPDTP. Shortlisted applicants will be interviewed on 3,4 or 5 February 2026.

Visit our website for further information on eligibility and how to apply: https://biodtp.norwichresearchpark.ac.uk/.

Our partners value diverse and inclusive work environments that are positive and supportive. Students are selected for admission without regard to gender, marital or civil partnership status, disability, race, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, age or social background.

To maximise accessibility and attract students from underrepresented groups to our programme we have introduced bespoke templates for applicant Personal and Research statements which will enable every applicant to fully represent themselves through providing suitable examples and evidence. These forms are on the NRPDTP website and must be used for these sections of the application form.

Entry requirements

At least UK equivalence Bachelors (Honours) 2:1. English Language requirement (Faculty of Science equivalent: IELTS 6.5 overall, 6 in each category).

Funding

This project is awarded with a 4-year Norwich Research Park Biosciences Doctoral Training Partnership PhD DTP studentship. The studentship includes payment of tuition fees (directly to the University), a stipend to cover living expenses (2025/6 stipend rate: £20,780), and a Research Training Support Grant of £5,000pa for each year of the studentship.

References

Zdrzałek R, Xi Y, Langner T, Bentham AR, Petit-Houdenot Y, De la Concepcion JC, Harant A, Shimizu M, Were V, Talbot NJ, Terauchi R, Kamoun S & Banfield MJ (2024) Bioengineering a plant NLR immune receptor with a robust binding interface towards a conserved fungal pathogen effector. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2402872121

De la Concepcion JC, Langner T, Fujisaki K, Yan X, Were V, Ho Ching Lam A, Saado I, Brabham HJ, Win J, Yoshida K, Talbot NJ, Terauchi R, Kamoun S & Banfield MJ (2023) Zinc-finger (ZiF) fold secreted effectors form a functionally diverse family across lineages of the blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1012277

Maidment JH, Shimizu M, Sham V, Franceschetti M, Longya A, Stevenson CEM, De la Concepcion JC, Białas A, Kamoun S, Terauchi R & Banfield MJ (2023) Effector target-guided engineering of an integrated domain expands the disease resistance profile of a rice NLR immune receptor. PMID: doi: 10.7554/eLife.81123

De la Concepcion JC, Fujisaki K, Bentham A, Cruz N, Sanchez V, Lawson D, Kamoun S, Terauchi R & Banfield MJ* (2022) Binding of a blast fungus Zinc-finger fold effector to a hydrophobic pocket in the host exocyst subunit Exo70 modulates immune recognition in rice. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2210559119

Mukhi N, Brown H, Gorenkin D, Ding P, Bentham AR, Jones JDG & Banfield MJ (2021) Perception of structurally distinct effectors by the integrated WRKY domain of a plant immune receptor. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2113996118

New Kids on the Block – engineering plant immunity for novel disease resistance (BANFIELD_J26DTP)

Project description

Entry requirements

Funding

References