Leeds, England, United Kingdom
I am interested in the secretory pathway, a group of membrane bound organelles that play key functions in virtually every process of eukaryotic life. Our research is mainly curiosity- and hypothesis-driven, and we use biochemical transport assays, cellular engineering, and in vivo imaging techniques to capture the exciting microcosmos of plant cells. Key-topics include ER retention mechanisms, vacuolar sorting and secretion, with a focus on understanding the full transport cycles, not just stating that a gene is required. More recently, we have become interested in harnessing the plant secretory pathway for the renewable production of food, energy and materials from plants.
I moved from York to Leeds in January 1999, first as senior lecturer, then Reader in 2004 and professor in 2007. The current focus is on Plant Cell Biology and Biotechnology
This is the place I started to build my own research group, working on endoplasmic reticulum chaperons and protein transport.