Dr Kathryn Ford
PhD, MSc, BSc
Expertise
As a lecturer, I teach across all years of our Biological Sciences degrees. My research background centres on agricultural biotechnology, with a particular interest in fungal pathogens of plants.
Current positions
Lecturer
School of Biological Sciences
Contact
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Biography
Following an undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences at the Univerisity of Birmingham, I stayed at Birmingham and completed an MSc in Plant Conservation and Genetics.
I subsequently came to Bristol for my PhD in Plant Pathology, which focused on the fungal plant pathogen Armillaria mellea (honey fungus), and then undertook a postdoc at the James Hutton Institute in Dundee, working on Rhynchosporium commune, a fungal pathogen of barley.
I returned to Bristol to undertake my current position as Lecturer here in the School of Biological Sciences.
Publications
Recent publications
09/01/2023Comparative bioinformatics analysis of the biosynthetic pathways and key candidate genes of three species, Vitis vinifera, Fragaria vesca and Olea europaea, furnish enzyme sets for the production of pharmaceutically valuable terpenes in heterologous hosts
Journal of Plant Biochemistry and Biotechnology
Vertical and horizontal gene transfer shaped plant colonization and biomass degradation in the fungal genus Armillaria
Nature Microbiology
Beneficial Uses of Genetically Modified Crops
eLS (Encyclopedia of Life Sciences)
A faster inoculation assay for Armillaria using herbaceous plants
Journal of Horticultural Science and Biotechnology
Honey fungus
The Plantsman
Teaching
I teach on the following units:
Year 1 - Life Processes (biotechnology; plant disease and immunity)
Year 2 - Molecular Genetics (exploitation of GM techniques)
Year 3 - Supervision of research projects, Advanced Practical Skills and literature reviews
Year 4 - Unit Director for Professional Development; Supervision of research projects and literature reviews
Bioinformatics MSc - Unit Director for Entrepreneurship and Professional Development
Field courses:
I lead two field courses in the second year: Feeding the World with Innovative Plants, and DNA Barcoding of Foraged Foods, and I'm co-lead on Exploring Marine Biodiversity through Bioinformatics.
