Thesis subject
On the role of lateral gene transfer in the evolution of plant parasitic nematodes
How to become a (plant) parasite? This is a central question underlying this BSc subject. One of the main challenges for a nematode to use plants as a food source is the penetration of the plant cell wall, a major physical barrier.
Plant parasitic nematodes produce cell wall degrading enzymes (CWDEs), and we have various (so far non conclusive) indications that the corresponding genes were acquired from bacteria by lateral gene transfer. So far mainly high impact plant parasites have been investigated, and in this BSc topic you will be looking for the origin of the plant cell wall degrading enzymes by investigating their distribution and nature of these CDWEs in basal (‘primitive’) plant parasites. The research will include the PCR amplification, cloning and sequencing of CDWEs, and the phylogenetic analysis of the resulting data.
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Period(s):
Period(s) in which subject is available: All periods
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Major(s):
This thesis topic is well suited for students of the following Bachelor programmes:
BBI - Major B Organismal Adaptation and Development
BBT
BML
BPW - Major A Plant Genomics and Health
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Application:
Deadline for application for the project: At least two weeks
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Project:
Type of research project: Experimental work