Current Lab Members
Meet the team
Prof Miriam Gifford (Lab head)
Description: Miriam’s interests are in studying complex networks involved in plant responses to the environment and plasticity. Her group has a broad range of interests and she aims to support individual projects whilst also fostering a sense of the core Gifford lab focus. She also acts as Head of the School of Life Sciences which involves juggling lots of roles in teaching and research strategy and operations.
Special research interest: During a PhD and postdoctoral work she developed systems (now engineering) biology approaches to do study plant root-environment dynamics and is particularly fascinated with location of response.
Goes well with: Lab lunches, posing hypotheses that include ‘to what extent’.
Does not go well with: Lack of coloured pens or hypotheses.
Best trait: Enthusiasm for projects and “nodding encouragingly".
Favourite quote: "You wanna tempt the wrath of the whatever from high atop the thing?" – The West Wing
Dr Emma Picot
Background: Emma’s studied an undergraduate degree in Biochemistry at the University of Warwick, continuing to do an MSc in Systems Biology followed by a PhD in the transcriptional regulation of circadian-clock regulated genes in Arabidopsis thaliana with Professor Isabelle CarréLink opens in a new window. After this she moved to the Department of Genetics at the University of Leicester to study the genetic mechanism for phenotypic variation in clock phenotypes in fruit flies. She then returned to Warwick to work on circadian changes in the soil microbiome with Professor Gary BendingLink opens in a new window, sparking the interest in plant-microbe interactions.
Description: Emma’s current research focusses on the symbiotic relationship between Medicago truncatula and nitrogen fixing rhizobia and how this is affected when a plant has altered circadian clock function.
Special Interest: Using “big data” to understand scientific relationships, and improving agriculture through the use of microbes.
Goes Well With: R scripts, Pepsi max, dry white wine.
Does Not Go Well With: Dying plants, lack of curiosity.
Favourite quote: “Life, uh, finds a way” – Dr. Ian Malcom
Dr. Liam Walker
Background: Liam did his undergraduate degree (Medical, Microbiology and Virology, 2011-2015) at the School of Life Sciences here at the University of Warwick before transferring to do an integrated masters degree (MBio). Liam then did his PhD (2015-2020) here in the Gifford lab, studying differential gene expression when roots are exposed to rhizobial symbionts or root pathogens in the model legume Medicago truncatula. During this time, he also worked extensively with fluorescence activated cell sorting data to understand how environmental responses are partitioned within Arabidopsis roots and adapting these techniques to M. truncatula. Liam then stayed at Warwick for a Postdoc in the lab of Prof George Bassel where he studied bet-hedging in seed populations; he used rational engineering approaches to modify the extent of bet-hedging and developed a luciferase assay to monitor seed germination in real time. Additionally, he also undertook computational work to produce 3D reconstructions of plant organs to understand how they have changed throughout the evolution of land plants.
Description: Liam is working as a Research Fellow via Warwick University combining project management, guidance and mentorship of students, independent research and teaching and outreach activities.
Special interests: Plant microbe-interactions, plant development, plant evolution.
Goes well with: Pasta, sports, video games, spheal.
Does not go well with: Wasps, hot drinks, blood & gore.
Best trait: Thorough.
Favourite quote: “The threat of having our very existence taken away by death brings a mighty focus to the idea of what matters most to us.” – Kathryn Mannix
Dr. Sally Adams
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Suzanna Dickson
Background: Suzanna studied Neuroscience at The University of Manchester before working there as a research technician in a circadian immunology lab. Slowly she realised that plant biology is much more interesting than human biology and moved to Warwick in 2022 to join the Gifford group as part of the MIBTP PhD scheme.
Description: Suzanna’s PhD focuses on the impact of the circadian clock on plant root symbionts.
Special interest: Comparative circadian biology.
Goes well with: Cake, bicycles and the sea.
Does not go well with: Beetroot.
Favourite quote: “Time is an illusion, lunchtime doubly so.” ― Douglas Adams
Matthew Jolly
Background: I did my undergrad at the University of Warwick in biological sciences and found out about the opportunities and relevance of plant biology during my 3rd year research project on plant proteomics. I made my way to the Gifford lab due to my fascination with symbiotic interactions. I was introduced to the Gifford lab with my master’s project and am continuing on in the lab to do my PhD. I am currently working on the circadian clock project where we are trying to elucidate the clocks control and effect on legume-rhizobia symbiosis.
Description: I am utilizing and developing multiple methods to transform Medicago including protoplasts, biolistics, seed and floral agrobacterium transformation methods. The ultimate goal is to generate clock transformant lines to better understand the circadian clocks impact on legume-rhizobia symbiosis.
Special interest: Plant transformation techniques.
Goes well with: Rock climbing, ergonomic pipettes.
Does not go well with: Leaky waste bags, low concentration miniprep results.
Favourite quote: “Nature presents us with such beauty and such horror, yet is cruel or kind enough to prevent us from distinguish between the two”
Cara Wharton
Background: Cara studied for a Natural Sciences BSc degree in Biology and Chemistry at the University of Durham, and completed a MSc in Molecular Biotechnology from the University of Hertfordshire. She then worked as a Seed Development and Metabolism research technician at Rothamsted Research, before joining the MIBTP doctoral training programme.
Description: Cara’s PhD is a collaboration between Harper Adams University and the University of Warwick involving physiological and molecular analysis of rapid rooting traits in lettuce.
Special research interest: How root traits can help crops adapt to the changing climate.
Goes well with: Chocolate and house plants
Does not go well with: Horror films
Favourite quote: “When all else fails, take a nap” – Winnie the Pooh (A. A. Milne)
Rida Faizi
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Description: Rida her my M. Phil Biological Sciences from University of the Punjab and worked in the pharmaceutical industry before joining MIBTP DTP at University of Warwick. She is currently working on the circadian clock project and trying to interpret the nodulation and flowering crosstalk in Medicago truncatula and how clock genes integrate into flowering pathway.
Special interests: Plant development.
Goes well with: Calligraphy, perfumes, poetry.
Does not go well with: Overbooked instruments.
Best trait: Always happy to help!
Favourite quote: "Those who look for seashells will find seashells; those who open them will find pearls" – Al Ghazalli
Yinying Yuan:
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Description: Yinying completed her undergraduate degree at Hainan University studying horticulture and researching tissue culture of Dendrobium officinale, and then moved on to Northwest A&F University for her Master’s, where she studied plant grafting across different families. For a long time, she noticed grafting was mostly done in woody plants and had a sudden lightbulb moment: can herbaceous plants be grafted too? It turned out... a lot of smart people had already had the same idea. However, grafting technology for herbaceous plants still has a long way to go. Therefore, she joined the Gifford lab in 2025 and is currently working on a Medicago truncatula grafting project.
Special interests: Yinying's research aims to utilize grafting and split-root to elucidate signal transduction in nitrogen fixation pathways and understand the systemic regulation of nodule nitrogen fixation by circadian rhythms.
Goes well with: hiking, photography, piano, cooking, and funny people who can tolerate my 2G brain lag when joking.
Does not go well with: ASAP tasks, unplanned chaos, and a life without flowers.
Best trait: Professionally unbothered.
Favourite quote: "If it’s meant to be, it’ll be. If not, I’ll be napping."