D. Heavens

An improved Nicotiana benthamiana bioproduction chassis provides novel insights into nicotine biosynthesis

This study improves Nicotiana benthamiana for bioproduction by reducing nicotine levels and provides insights into the role of BBLs in nicotine biosynthesis.

An accessible, efficient and global approach for the large-scale sequencing of bacterial genomes

The paper describes a low-cost, efficient pipeline for large-scale bacterial genome sequencing, demonstrating its application in collecting and sequencing 10,419 isolates from multiple countries.

Analysis of wild plant pathogen populations reveals a signal of adaptation in genes evolving for survival in agriculture in the beet rust pathogen (Uromyces beticola)

The paper compares genetic diversity in wild and agricultural populations of the beet rust pathogen to identify genes adapting to agriculture, finding greater divergence in fungal effector genes.

A novel allele of ASY3 promotes meiotic stability in autotetraploid Arabidopsis lyrata

This study identifies a novel ASY3 allele that enhances meiotic stability in autotetraploid Arabidopsis lyrata by altering crossover distribution and reducing meiotic crossovers.

Semi-quantitative characterisation of mixed pollen samples using MinION sequencing and Reverse Metagenomics (RevMet)

This paper introduces RevMet, a pipeline for semi-quantitative characterization of mixed eukaryote samples using MinION sequencing and genome skims, demonstrating its effectiveness in identifying plant species in pollen samples.

Stability of association between Arabidopsis thaliana and Pseudomonas pathogens over evolutionary time scales

The paper surveys Pseudomonas in Arabidopsis thaliana over multiple years and sites, finding that pathogenic sublineages coexist without a single dominant strain overtaking populations.