In 2019, I obtained my BA in Natural Sciences (Plant Sciences) from the University of Cambridge. During my studies, I conducted a research project on the transmission of Cucumber Mosaic Virus by aphids in the group of Professor John Carr. Later that year, I joined Sebastian Schornack’s group as a research technician, where I worked with Dr Philip Carella studying plant immunity in the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha. In October 2020, I started my PhD in the Schornack Group, which focuses on a comparative characterisation of intracellular interfaces between filamentous microbes and plants.
Research Interests
My research interests lie in understanding the interactions between plants and microbes, both symbiotic and pathogenic. Specifically, I focus on the formation of intracellular interfaces, such as haustoria or arbuscules, which are crucial for nutrient exchange, defence, and communication between the host plant and filamentous microbes. Through identifying protein and lipid constituents of these interfaces, I aim to determine the extent to which mycorrhizal fungi and pathogenic oomycetes in roots and shoots share the same plant components and processes.
Key Publications
Alessandra Bonfanti, Euan Thomas Smithers, Matthieu Bourdon, Alex Guyon, Philip Carella, Ross Carter, Raymond Wightman, Sebastian Schornack, Henrik Jönsson, Sarah Robinson (2023) Stiffness transitions in new walls post-cell division differ between Marchantia polymorpha gemmae and Arabidopsis thaliana leaves. PNAS. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2302985120
Evangelisti, E., Guyon, A., Shenhav, L., Schornack, S., 2023. FIRE mimics a 14-3-3-binding motif to promote Phytophthora palmivora infection. Mol. Plant-Microbe Interactions®. https://doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-12-22-0251-R
Arinaitwe, W., Guyon, A., Tungadi, T.D., Cunniffe, N.J., Rhee, S.-J., Khalaf, A., Mhlanga, N.M., Pate, A.E., Murphy, A.M., Carr, J.P., 2022. The Effects of Cucumber Mosaic Virus and Its 2a and 2b Proteins on Interactions of Tomato Plants with the Aphid Vectors Myzus persicae and Macrosiphum euphorbiae. Viruses 14, 1703. https://doi.org/10.3390/v14081703
