Bart Thomma
Associate Professor
Laboratory of Phytopathology
For contact information see my Business Card
E-mail: bart.thomma@wur.nl
Research
I am interested in fungal pathogenicity mechanisms, in particular of the vascular wilt fungus Verticillium dahliae. This fungus infects a wide range of host plants that includes numerous crops, ornamentals and trees. The research in my lab focuses on the biology, genomics and pathology of Verticillium dahliae and resistance against this pathogen in tomato mediated by the receptor-like protein Ve1. Interestingly, interfamily transfer of tomato Ve1 mediates Verticillium resistance in Arabidopsis.
In plant pathology, it is broadly accepted that successful pathogens secrete so-called “effectors” to perturb or suppress host defenses. Typically, pathogen effector catalogs are lineage-specific and effectors lack homologs in other species. We recently identified the LysM effector Ecp6 in the fungal tomato pathogen Cladosporium fulvum that perturbs host immunity by acting as a stealth factor. Intriguingly, LysM effectors occur throughout the fungal kingdom and I am interested to study the role of LysM effectors in fungal biology.
To read more about the research in my lab and see my team members click here.
Scientific publications
For my scientific publications click here.
Scientific career and academic positions
| |
|
| 2009-present |
Associate Professor, Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University. |
| 2006-present: |
Staff Member, Graduate School Experimental Plant Sciences. |
| 2006-2009: |
Assistant Professor, Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University. |
| 2003-2006: |
Postdoc; Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University. |
| 2000-2003: |
Postdoc; Centre of Microbial and Plant Genetics, Leuven University, Belgium. |
| 2000 |
Ph.D. degree at Leuven University, Belgium. Thesis ‘Separate defence response pathways in Arabidopsis thaliana contribute differentially to resistance against distinct microbial pathogens’. Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Willem Broekaert. |
| 1996: |
M.Sc. degree in Plant Pathology, cum laude; Wageningen Agricultural University. Majors in Nematology and Phytopathology. |
Awards
• Young Visiting Scientist Stipend from the Netherlands Genomics Initiative (NGI) (2011)
• Communication Award from the Centre for BioSystems Genomics (2008)
• VIDI fellowship from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) (2007)
• Research Award from the Centre for BioSystems Genomics (2006)
• VENI fellowship from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) (2004)
• Postdoctoral fellowship Research Foundation Flanders (FWO), Belgium (2000)
• PhD fellowship Research Foundation Flanders (FWO), Belgium (1996)
Public outreach
2011 Academische Boekengids: “De oorlog tussen schimmel en plant”
2010 Resource: “Schimmel legt afweer in de luren”
2010 Gelderlander: “Schimmel kan plant en mens foppen”
2009 Elsevier: “Ziekmakende planten”
2007 NRC Handelsblad: “Koninkrijksspringers”
2007 Algemeen Dagblad: “Komt een plant bij de dokter” [Part 1][Part 2].
2007 Bionieuws: “Grenzeloos ziekmakend”.
2007 Resource: “Enge ziekten uit het plantenrijk”
2007 Telegraaf: “Virus springt van plant op mens”
Teaching
• ENT-51306 Frontiers in Medical and Veterinary Biology
• HMI-50306 Host-Microbe Interactomics
• NEM-20806 Basics of Infectious Diseases
• PHP-30306 Plant-Microbe Interactions