Insights into soil-borne pathogens: characterization of Swedish Rhizoctonia solani strains and xylem adaptations of Verticillium dahliae

Shirley Marcou (PhD researcher and assistant)

I currently work as a scientific researcher on the Trans-pathoflax 2.0 project, which focuses on understanding and managing plant–pathogen interactions to support the development of sustainable disease control strategies for Verticillium wilt in flax.

In parallel, I am pursuing my PhD research on the soil-borne pathogens Rhizoctonia solani and Verticillium dahliae. The first part of my doctoral work involves the isolation and anastomosis group-level characterisation of over 200 Swedish R. solani isolates collected from various crops, including carrot. The second part focuses on Verticillium dahliae, a vascular wilt pathogen infecting more than 200 plant species, including sweet pepper, and known to cause stunted growth and wilt symptoms. V. dahliae can persist in soil for extended periods and colonises the plant’s xylem - a nutritionally poor environment. To thrive in this niche, vascular pathogens are believed to have developed mechanisms to increase nutrient availability within the xylem. To investigate these mechanisms, I apply a combination of biochemical, ecophysiological, molecular, and microscopy techniques to gain novel insights into the behaviour and adaptation of V. dahliae in planta.