people
Ellie Harrison
I’m currently a tenure track NERC fellow. Im interested in the forces that shape microbial communities. I’m often addressing this question at the sub-cellular level, focused on the menagerie of mobile genetic elements that exist within and between bacterial genomes. At present I am working on MGEs in Rhizobia - the bacteria that (sometimes) lives in the roots of legumes and provides them with lovely nitrogen. What a cracking bunch of lads.
Mary Eliza
I am a Ph.D. student working on an integrated research project. I am studying the potential of phage-based inoculants in agriculture. I am investigating the fitness effects of temperate phages (viruses which live in bacteria without killing them) on Rhizobia (bacteria which fix nitrogen in legumes) and the effect of these Rhizobial inoculants on the plant yield. Besides, I am also focusing on understanding the farmers’ knowledge about the soil microbiome and the techniques they use to support and improve the soil microbiome. I am thus interested to work towards a sustainable and environment-friendly food agriculture using public participation!
Grace Wardell
I am a PhD student currently studying soya-nodulating rhizobia and how introducing them to a non-native range, the UK, may impact our soil microbiome. I am investigating if the introduction induces changes in bacterial community composition and diversity, as well as looking for evidence of horizontal gene transfer of soya-nodulation genes into the native microbiome. I am particularly interested in mechanisms driving horizontal gene transfer in rhizobia, as the acquisition of symbiotic genes can provide huge benefits for the humble rhizobium! My project is cross -collaborative with the James Hutton Institute in Dundee and our commercial partner Plantworks UK.
Sam Ford
Hello! I work as a research technician in the Harrison and Brockhurst labs trying to better understand the evolution of mobile genetic elements. In the Harrison group I work on Rhizobium phage genomics and with the Brockhurst group I work on Pseudomonas plasmid dynamics in the Rhizosphere. You will usually find me on a laptop trying to get code to run, or setting up soil-microcosms for evolution experiments in the lab.