Abstract:
In this talk, JJ will discuss insights from cryoEM-based structural biology into how an Arabidopsis immune receptor can recognize multiple effectors.  He will also present new work on how surface receptor-initiated immunity potentiates intracellular receptor function. Finally he will discuss immune receptor deployment to control crop diseases.

Bio:
Professor Jonathan Jones (JJ) investigates plant immunity to disease. His team isolated and characterized many resistance (R) genes that encode plant immune receptors and revealed key insights into immune receptor mechanisms. He pioneered genomics methods to accelerate R gene cloning and the analysis of plant immune receptor diversity and evolution and is a strong advocate for using immune receptor genes from wild relatives to replace crop protection agrochemicals with genetics. 

Since 1988, JJ has worked at The Sainsbury Laboratory, Norwich UK, serving as Head of Laboratory 1994-7 and 2003-2009. He was elected member of EMBO in 1998, Fellow of Royal Society in 2003 and International Member of the US National Academy of Sciences in 2015. He received the 2023 outstanding achievement award from the ISMPMI.