Members

Steven investigated plant transcriptional condensates and systemic mobile long non-coding RNA biology in National University of Singapore for his PhD. In the Parker lab, Steven collaborates with synthetic organic chemists and biophysicists from University of Cologne to study and engineer plant nucleotide-based small molecules that activate immunity through EDS1 heterodimers. He’s using in vitro protein biochemical and plant-based approaches.

Federica obtained her Ph.D. in Rome, where she studied the homeostasis of cell wall-derived DAMPs. After completing her Ph.D. school, she moved from Italy and joined Parker’s Lab. Federica is now aiming to dissect the underlying mechanisms of immune receptor signaling, specifically focusing on the EDS1/PAD4/ADR1 module

Trinh obtained her Master degree in Singapore studying mammalian immunomodulatory RNAs and RIG-I at The Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, with a strong focus on protein structural biology. She is now working on plant EDS1 heterodimer bound-nucleotide based small molecule signalling and developing in vitro assays and delivery strategies for further investigation.

Anthony comes from the United States and performed his PhD in the laboratory of Dr. Jörn Coers at Duke University, where he studied innate immunity to intracellular bacterial pathogens in mammalian systems. In the Parker Lab, Anthony is interested in how plants facilitate interactions with beneficial soil microorganisms, and how these interactions are shaped by abiotic stress, such as micronutrient deprivation. Additionally, natural soils are populated by complex mixtures of microorganisms that range from host-beneficial to deleterious, and which produce a multitude of molecules that may shape plant-microbe interactions. Accordingly, Anthony is interested in how inputs from such soil communities impact interactions between plants and host-beneficial microorganisms

Lara comes from Belgium and obtained her Master degree in Biochemistry and Biotechnology at the University of Ghent. She joined the Parker group as a PhD student in April 2022 and is part of the SPP Priority Programme DECRyPT_2125. Lara is studying the role of coumarins in Arabidopsis iron nutrition and how fungal endophyte colonisation influences this process. Her project aims to understand the underlying mechanisms involved in iron metabolism in the context of the interplay between plant roots, coumarins and fungi.

Junli comes from China and she is a postdoc who has joined parker group since 2019. She mainly worked about small RNA biogenesis during her PhD stage. The trade-off between plant growth and immunity greatly picks her curiosity. Therefore, she focuses on signalling events downstream of pathogen recognition, especially the molecular mechanism of TNLs-activated host cell death after completing her PhD project.