Professor Murray Grant

Supervisor Details

Contact Details

School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick

Scientific Background

Research Interests

My group studies pathogenic and beneficial plant microbes interactions. The pathogenic are mainly bacterial pathogens and the beneficial a cool fungus called Trichoderma hamatum.

We undertake very multidisciplinary research using genetics, molecular biology, metabolomics (small molecule profiling), imaging, gene editing/genetic manipulation and bioelectrical signalling approaches for new discovery. In fact, we are interested in far too many things like;

Can we identify new novel disease resistance mechanisms that can be deployed to alleviate food security? This means we either need to understand how plant disease resistance proteins function or find a novel resistance mechanism.
How does the immediate environment influence plant immunity?
What makes a pathogen a pathogen? This includes how a pathogen can suppress plant immunity, which means we need to understand how the pathogen “effectors” (proteins and small molecules) collaborate to cause disease.
How does a plant talks to itself (long distance communication)?
We do lots of imaging – primarily whole plant but more recently subcellular using a range of reporters to look at spatial temporal dynamics of infection processes.
How are plant hormones (yes they have them!) manipulated by pathogens to promote infection?
What bioactive molecules do beneficial soil fungus produce to underpin their biocontrol and plant growth promotion activities?
Can we use gene editing to improve horticultural crops for enhanced immunity or nutritional value?
And last but not least, we also look at diseases of ash trees, banana and – yes false banana!

We are a very diverse group and (at the moment) well-funded, primarily by BBSRC/UKRI, The Royal Society and the Elizabeth Creak Charitable Trust.

Scientific Inspiration

Sir Edmund Hillary: Showed nothing is impossible with planning and commitment yet happy to give the spotlight to Tenzig Norgay.

Research Groups

Plant Disease Resistance

Plant and Agricultural Sciences

Environment and Ecology

Quantitative Systems and Engineering Biology

Food

Supervision Style

In three words or phrases: Engage technology, challenge dogma, take no shortcuts.

Provision of Teaching

A very well-funded laboratory infrastructure with nucleus of technical, post-doctoral, post-graduate or collaborator support to enable training across a broad range of essential multidisciplinary techniques for engaged prospective PhD’s.

The ultimate goal is for you not to wake up on Monday looking forward to Friday.

Progression Monitoring and Management

I am always available to discuss as research is my passion. We work on a system that involves initially weekly face-to-face meetings to overview, trouble shoot and forward plan, and is supplemented by mentor (Postdoc or senior PhD) to support and facilitate progress on a daily basis.

Communication

I am available by e-mail at most hours of the day and night. The lab has a WhatsApp group from which I am excluded so you can moan. We have weekly lab meetings and the odd BBQ or two. And there is always a door to knock on….

PhD Students can expect scheduled meetings with me:

In a group meeting

At least once per week

In year 1 of PhD study

At least once per week

In year 2 of PhD study

At least once per fortnight

In year 3 of PhD study

At least once per fortnight

These meetings will be mainly face to face, and I am usually contactable for an instant response on every working day.

Working Patterns

The timing of work in my lab is completely flexible, and (other than attending pre-arranged meetings), I expect students to manage their own time.

Notice Period for Feedback

I need at least 1 week’s notice to provide feedback on written work of up to 5000 words.

MIBTP Project Details

Current Projects (2025-26)

Primary supervisor for:

Smart pathogens; deploying metabolic decoys to suppress plant immunity

See the PhD Opportunities section to see if this project is currently open for applications via MIBTP.

Please Note: The main page lists projects via BBSRC Research Theme(s) quoted and then relevant Topic(s).

Smart pathogens; deploying metabolic decoys to suppress plant immunity

Secondary Supervisor(s): Dr Lijiang Song

University of Registration: University of Warwick

BBSRC Research Themes:

Sustainable Agriculture and Food (Plant and Crop Science)
Understanding the Rules of Life (Plant Science)

Project Outline

This project delves into one of the hottest and most fascinating recent discoveries in our journey to understanding plant disease defense responses and how pathogens manipulate them. It has potential to make a massive contribution to enhancing global food security as plant disease resistance genes underpin all major breeding programmes in elite crops. The project builds on some pioneering discoveries that underline the complexity of pathogen plant interactions. Plant disease resistance proteins were identified more than 30 years ago. However, only in the last 5 years have we begun to understand part of how they function to trigger disease resistance.

R proteins, come in two flavours; both have central nucleotide binding (N) and carboxyl terminal leucine rich repeat (L) domains, but differ in whether they have a TIR (Toll-like, Interleukin-1 receptor; TNL) or coiled-coil (CNL) N-terminal domains. The TNL class of plant disease resistance proteins form a tetrameric resistosome, and homodimerization of the TIR domain has NADase activity which results in the production of 2’ variant cADP-ribose (vcADPR), derivatives of which underpin activation of the hypersensitive response (HR) which contains the pathogen.

Remarkably, pathogens also deploy TIR domains. However their NADase activity produces a subtle variant, to 3’ v-cADPRs. We have discovered that this simple variant in the glycosidic linkage has dramatic effects on not only TNL, but also CNL signalling. 3’ v-cADPR and its derivatives function to suppress immunity and this project focus on who the suppression of immunity occurs and the extent to which this is deployed by other plant pathogens. The project benefits from a fantastic range of resources to accurately and non-destructively capture temporal spatial changes in plant disease resistance sigalling and state-of-the art analytical resources in the department of Chemistry to quantify the impact of vcADPRs and their derivatives on plant immune signalling. This project involves collaborators in the USA, Hong Kong and Australia. The project deploys a range of pre-existing tools and techniques including real time imaging, RNAseq, CRISPR gene editing, genetically encoded reporters and targeted mass spectrometry to dissect how these metabolic decoys alter plant immunity. Warwick has excellent facilities for this research including state-of-the-art imaging suite and one of the UKs leading Mass Spectrometry facilities.

If you want to work at the cutting edge of plant immunity and develop interdisciplinary skill sets for a future research career, then you may want to consider this project. For our latest publications (more in the pipeline!) and general literature on R protein function see below.

References

From the lab:

Manik et al., Science 377, eadc8969 (2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.adc8969.

Bayless et al., Sci. Adv. 9, eade8487 (2023).

Jacob et al. 2023 PNAS doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2220921120.

Reviews:

Jones et al. 2024 Cell. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.03.045.

Chai et al.2023, MPMI Vol. doi.org/10.1094/MPMI-05-23-0073-HH.

Chai et al. 2023 Current Opinion in Plant Biology 2023 doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2022.102334.

Dissecting unexpected synergism and antagonism in plant disease resistance signalling

See the PhD Opportunities section to see if this project is currently open for applications via MIBTP.

Please Note: The main page lists projects via BBSRC Research Theme(s) quoted and then relevant Topic(s).

Dissecting unexpected synergism and antagonism in plant disease resistance signalling

Secondary Supervisor(s): Professor Vardis Ntoukakis

University of Registration: University of Warwick

BBSRC Research Themes:

Sustainable Agriculture and Food (Plant and Crop Science)
Understanding the Rules of Life (Plant Science)

Project Outline

Plants initially perceive pathogens via surface receptors that recognise non-self. This is termed PTI (Pathogen associated molecular Pattern Triggered Immunity). Pathogen effectors both suppress PTI and reconfigure host cells to provide a favourable environment for pathogen multiplication. Plant disease resistance (R)proteins are primarily intracellular receptors which directly or indirectly perceive pathogen effectors or their activity (e.g. perturbation of host cellular function), and activate Effector Triggered Immunity (ETI). This leads to the hypersensitive response (HR) and contains the invading pathogen.

R proteins, NLRs, come in two flavours; both have central nucleotide binding (N) and carboxyl terminal leucine rich repeat (L) domains, but differ in whether they have a TIR (Toll-like, Interleukin-1 receptor; TNL) or coiled-coil (CNL) N-terminal domains. For nearly 30 years following the discovery of plant disease resistance genes, our understanding of how activated R proteins function was fragmentary until 5 years ago when structural biology provided unprecedented insight into R function. Briefly, on activation CNLs for pentameric and TNLs tetrameric “resistosomes”. TIR dimerization generates NADase activity resulting in novel signalling nucleosides being generated. The coiled-coil domains of CNL resistosomes form calcium channel pores.

While recent studies have shown PTI and ETI work synergistically, potentiating responses no one has yet explored cross-talk between TNLs and CNLs.

Using a unique combination of real time whole plant imaging approaches that capture temporal and spatial information on physiological changes during ETI responses in the Arabidopsis thaliana – Pseudomonas syringae pathosystem. Remarkably, we have found that that simultaneous delivery of different combinations of CNL or TNL activating effectors leads to remarkable alterations in ETI dynamics, both synergistic and antagonistic depending on the effector combination, leading to dramatically altered HR timings.

Thus, this project will use our extensive collection of Arabidopsis mutants in ETI signalling combined with wild type and mutant P. syringae isolates delivering different combinations of TNL or CNL activating effectors to dissect the mechanistic basis for this unexpected ETI crosstalk.

You will be exposed to a range of technique including whole plant real time imaging (chlorophyll fluorescence and biophoton generation), RNA-seq, microbiology, CRISPR gene editing, imaging genetically encoded reporters and targeted mass spectrometry (to report discriminant ETI compounds).

If you want to join a well-funded vibrant research team working at the cutting edge of plant immunity, and you are highly motivated and have a passion for plant molecular biology and imaging, then this project will allow you to develop a range of interdisciplinary skill sets for your future research career.

While this is a novel area and no publications currently exist on this subject (license to operate) please see references below for the current state of the field.

References

Jones et al. Cell. 2024 doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.03.045.

Contreras et al. 2023, EMBO Reports DOI 10.15252/embr.202357495

Chai et al. 2023 Current Opinion in Plant Biology DOI 10.1016/j.pbi.2022.10233.

Co-supervisor on a project with Dr Mojgan Rabiey.

Previous Projects (2024-25)

Primary supervisor for:

Choreographing plant disease; pathogen effector manipulation of organelles – the view from inside Saving the Brussel sprout – understanding infection dynamics and the hydrathode TIRrifically complex but TIRribly exciting – unravelling metabolic immunity Who was first? Dissecting synergism and antagonism in plant disease resistance signalling

Co-supervisor on a project with Professor Alex Jones.