Academic staff in the School of Biosciences 

Professor Rob Jackson is an expert in bacteria-plant interactions, making major contributions to the understanding of how pathogens cause disease and how pathogens evolve to evade host immunity. He also has interests in applied biology questions relating to biocontrol approaches to treat plant diseases.

Hansong is a leading expert in mitochondrial genetics. Her group developed tools and systems in Drosophila to study mitochondrial DNA transmission and maintenance.

https://www.themalab.co.uk/

Programme Director for Natural Sciences.

Dr Roisin Madigan teaches on a variety of courses in Biosciences and the Medical and Dental School, and has particular interest in problem-based learning.  

Nigel Maxted is Professor of Plant Genetic Conservation, with specific expertise in in situ and ex situ conservation related to crops, their wild relative and other socio-economically important plants.

Nigel has led National, European and International crop, their wild relative and other socio-economically important plant conservation projects with funding from international (FAO, GEF, Bioversity ...

I am Professor of Infectious Disease at the Institute of Microbiology and Infection. My research centres on human infectious diseases, with a particular focus on how specific pathogens subvert the human immune response.  Currently, I am seconded to the UK Government for three days per week as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Food Standards Agency.

Professor McDonald and his research team apply a combination of cultivation-based and molecular approaches to characterise and engineer both host-associated and environmental microbiomes, to understand their role in host health status, biogeochemical cycling and ecosystem function. Current research focusses on microbiome engineering approaches to address key global challenges such as waste ...

Megan uses next-generation sequencing tools identify and characterise virulence genes from fungal pathogens of wheat and barley. To do this Megan has worked extensively with long-read de novo genome assembly, genome annotation and transposon annotation. Megan’s background is in population genetics of plant pathogens, studying their origins and global movement during her graduate studies. ...

Dr Steve Minchin has an interest in transcriptional control at both the molecular and genomic level. He has a strong interest in research-led teaching, innovation and quality management. In 2009 he was awarded the Head of Schools’ Award for Excellence in Teaching and Supporting Student Learning.

Professor Julia Myatt is the Academic Director for Sustainability Education at the University of Birmingham. As part of the Senior Education Team, Julia coordinates and promotes the central place of subject-specific and interdisciplinary education in sustainability and climate awareness across the University’s teaching and learning strategy. Julia is also part of the Birmingham Institute ...