Nichola Hawkins
@nicholahawkins.bsky.social
Plant pathologist / evolutionary biologist researching crop protection and antimicrobial resistance in fungal diseases of plants. Evolution and sustainable agriculture. Wild flowers and sharing the love of plants and botany. 🌾🧫🧬🍄🌼
Pinned
Learning from fungicide resistance: Evolutionary insights to guide RNAi-based control of fungal crop pathogens
Crop protection against fungal pathogens is essential to prevent crop losses and maintain food security. Current crop protection relies heavily on che…
www.sciencedirect.com
New paper out now in @britmycolsoc.org.uk Fungal Biology Reviews. Learning from fungicide resistance: Evolutionary insights to guide RNAi-based control of fungal crop pathogens. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Nichola Hawkins
🚨New #PhD #adverts alert🚨
I currently have two PhD studentships being advertised on environmental #AMR ⬇️
More being advertised soon 👀
@ukceh.bsky.social @ukceh-moleco.bsky.social
I currently have two PhD studentships being advertised on environmental #AMR ⬇️
More being advertised soon 👀
@ukceh.bsky.social @ukceh-moleco.bsky.social
October 31, 2025 at 10:45 AM
🚨New #PhD #adverts alert🚨
I currently have two PhD studentships being advertised on environmental #AMR ⬇️
More being advertised soon 👀
@ukceh.bsky.social @ukceh-moleco.bsky.social
I currently have two PhD studentships being advertised on environmental #AMR ⬇️
More being advertised soon 👀
@ukceh.bsky.social @ukceh-moleco.bsky.social
Reposted by Nichola Hawkins
A fab bunch of talks for Session 1 Disease Management in Practice #PPATH2025
🌾 Helen Bates @niab-uk.bsky.social
🥔 Ashleigh Holmes @hutton.ac.uk
🧬 Aimee Fowkes - Fera x @newcastleuni.bsky.social
🍓 Avice Hall @herts.ac.uk
🌾 Helen Bates @niab-uk.bsky.social
🥔 Ashleigh Holmes @hutton.ac.uk
🧬 Aimee Fowkes - Fera x @newcastleuni.bsky.social
🍓 Avice Hall @herts.ac.uk
September 9, 2025 at 11:35 AM
A fab bunch of talks for Session 1 Disease Management in Practice #PPATH2025
🌾 Helen Bates @niab-uk.bsky.social
🥔 Ashleigh Holmes @hutton.ac.uk
🧬 Aimee Fowkes - Fera x @newcastleuni.bsky.social
🍓 Avice Hall @herts.ac.uk
🌾 Helen Bates @niab-uk.bsky.social
🥔 Ashleigh Holmes @hutton.ac.uk
🧬 Aimee Fowkes - Fera x @newcastleuni.bsky.social
🍓 Avice Hall @herts.ac.uk
Sea couch #SeedHeads, some infected with ergot fungus. On the sand dunes at Bridgwater Bay. #WildFlowerHour
September 7, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Sea couch #SeedHeads, some infected with ergot fungus. On the sand dunes at Bridgwater Bay. #WildFlowerHour
I always enjoy getting the chance to go out botanising in the field with the @wildflowersociety.bsky.social . This morning's plants included Silver cinquefoil Potentilla argentea, and the stunning hybrid goat's-beard Tragopogon x mirabilis.
September 6, 2025 at 2:17 PM
I always enjoy getting the chance to go out botanising in the field with the @wildflowersociety.bsky.social . This morning's plants included Silver cinquefoil Potentilla argentea, and the stunning hybrid goat's-beard Tragopogon x mirabilis.
We've seen lots of examples of parallel evolution at the point mutation level in fungicide target encoding genes (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...), and now @thorstenlangner.bsky.social has found repeated evolution of point mutations in a plant pathogen effector, too!
August 13, 2025 at 5:12 PM
We've seen lots of examples of parallel evolution at the point mutation level in fungicide target encoding genes (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...), and now @thorstenlangner.bsky.social has found repeated evolution of point mutations in a plant pathogen effector, too!
New paper out now in @britmycolsoc.org.uk Fungal Biology Reviews. Learning from fungicide resistance: Evolutionary insights to guide RNAi-based control of fungal crop pathogens. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Learning from fungicide resistance: Evolutionary insights to guide RNAi-based control of fungal crop pathogens
Crop protection against fungal pathogens is essential to prevent crop losses and maintain food security. Current crop protection relies heavily on che…
www.sciencedirect.com
August 11, 2025 at 4:48 PM
New paper out now in @britmycolsoc.org.uk Fungal Biology Reviews. Learning from fungicide resistance: Evolutionary insights to guide RNAi-based control of fungal crop pathogens. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Ash flower galls, caused by a mite, Acerina fraxinivora. A heavy infestation like this will reduce seed production but won't kill the tree.
July 27, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Ash flower galls, caused by a mite, Acerina fraxinivora. A heavy infestation like this will reduce seed production but won't kill the tree.
Viper's bugloss in the evening sunlight #WildFlowerHour #HairyPlants
July 13, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Viper's bugloss in the evening sunlight #WildFlowerHour #HairyPlants
A great day hearing from other plant-related research groups around Cambridge.
Botanicon 2025 - the 3rd annual Plants @ Cambridge conference bringing together plant scientists from across Cambridge to share their work and ideas.
@camplantsci.bsky.social @cropscicentre.bsky.social @niab-uk.bsky.social @cubotanicgarden.bsky.social #PlantsAtCambridge
@camplantsci.bsky.social @cropscicentre.bsky.social @niab-uk.bsky.social @cubotanicgarden.bsky.social #PlantsAtCambridge
July 4, 2025 at 2:18 PM
A great day hearing from other plant-related research groups around Cambridge.
This week I've been in France for a project meeting of our JPI-AMR project, Aerobiomics-AMR. Between meetings, we saw one of the Cyclone spore traps in action, visited Arvalis field trials with very high levels of brown rust, and stayed in the lovely town of St. Quentin.
June 19, 2025 at 1:41 PM
This week I've been in France for a project meeting of our JPI-AMR project, Aerobiomics-AMR. Between meetings, we saw one of the Cyclone spore traps in action, visited Arvalis field trials with very high levels of brown rust, and stayed in the lovely town of St. Quentin.
For the #WildFlowerHour #PinkFamily challenge, White campion with bonus #WildPlantDisease Anther smut.
May 18, 2025 at 7:18 PM
For the #WildFlowerHour #PinkFamily challenge, White campion with bonus #WildPlantDisease Anther smut.
Reposted by Nichola Hawkins
For the past few months I've been working on bringing to life something that I think is really needed: a field guide to plant pathogens (focusing on fungi and oomycetes). It has gotten to the point where I feel I can share it publically - read more at irishplants.org/blog/2025/03... ! #FungiFriends
March 7, 2025 at 9:17 PM
For the past few months I've been working on bringing to life something that I think is really needed: a field guide to plant pathogens (focusing on fungi and oomycetes). It has gotten to the point where I feel I can share it publically - read more at irishplants.org/blog/2025/03... ! #FungiFriends
Fungal antimicrobial resistance: online mini-symposium, March 27th. Cutting-edge genomics & fungal AMR breakthroughs with world-leading experts (and me!)
🧬 AMR & Genomics: Major Event Loading... 🧬
🚀 Get ready for the TARGetAMR & Fungal ONE Health Joint Mini-Symposium! 🍄🦠
📅 Thursday 27th March | 🕐 1-4 PM GMT
🔥 Cutting-edge genomics & fungal AMR breakthroughs with world-leading experts! 🌍💡
🔗 Register now! 👇
www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
🚀 Get ready for the TARGetAMR & Fungal ONE Health Joint Mini-Symposium! 🍄🦠
📅 Thursday 27th March | 🕐 1-4 PM GMT
🔥 Cutting-edge genomics & fungal AMR breakthroughs with world-leading experts! 🌍💡
🔗 Register now! 👇
www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
March 4, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Fungal antimicrobial resistance: online mini-symposium, March 27th. Cutting-edge genomics & fungal AMR breakthroughs with world-leading experts (and me!)
Reposted by Nichola Hawkins
I am very excited that @target-amr.bsky.social and the Fungal AMR One Health network (www.fungalamr.org) are organising an online mini-symposium on Fungal AMR Genomics on 25 March 1-4 pm GMT.
Please sign up here! www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
Please sign up here! www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
Tackling AMR Together: Insights from the Genomics & Fungal ONE Health UKRI Transdisciplinary Networks Online Mini-symposium: 27 Mar 25 – TargetAMR
www.targetamr.org.uk
March 3, 2025 at 5:14 PM
I am very excited that @target-amr.bsky.social and the Fungal AMR One Health network (www.fungalamr.org) are organising an online mini-symposium on Fungal AMR Genomics on 25 March 1-4 pm GMT.
Please sign up here! www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
Please sign up here! www.targetamr.org.uk/hdrevents/jo...
First celandine of the year! #WildFlowerHour
March 2, 2025 at 8:56 PM
First celandine of the year! #WildFlowerHour
Spring must be on the way, I found #theWinter10 just walking to the shops. Red deadnettle, white deadnettle, daisy, dandelion, groundsel, common field speedwell, green alkanet, shepherd's purse, chickweed, storksbill. #WildFlowerHour
February 23, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Spring must be on the way, I found #theWinter10 just walking to the shops. Red deadnettle, white deadnettle, daisy, dandelion, groundsel, common field speedwell, green alkanet, shepherd's purse, chickweed, storksbill. #WildFlowerHour
Experimental evolution under alternating conditions gave rise to "localized hypermutation", showing experimentally how two-speed genomes could evolve...
Experimental evolution of evolvability | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Experimental evolution of evolvability
Evolvability—the capacity to generate adaptive variation—is a trait that can itself evolve through natural selection. However, the idea that mutation can become biased toward adaptive outcomes remains...
www.science.org
February 23, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Experimental evolution under alternating conditions gave rise to "localized hypermutation", showing experimentally how two-speed genomes could evolve...
Egret spotted on the @niab-uk.bsky.social Cambridge trial ground today.
November 26, 2024 at 2:10 PM
Egret spotted on the @niab-uk.bsky.social Cambridge trial ground today.
Brilliant talk by @sandyknapp.bsky.social at @bsbibotany.bsky.social conference on the importance of taxonomic botany for food security (among many other things): quantifying evolutionary rates and adaptive potential in crops requires a detailed phylogeny of wild relatives for comparative studies.
November 23, 2024 at 4:31 PM
Brilliant talk by @sandyknapp.bsky.social at @bsbibotany.bsky.social conference on the importance of taxonomic botany for food security (among many other things): quantifying evolutionary rates and adaptive potential in crops requires a detailed phylogeny of wild relatives for comparative studies.
So I finally joined 🦋 during the train journey to London for the @bsbibotany.bsky.social British and Irish Botany Conference. Lovely to see a full house of botanists at the Natural History Museum.
November 23, 2024 at 11:31 AM
So I finally joined 🦋 during the train journey to London for the @bsbibotany.bsky.social British and Irish Botany Conference. Lovely to see a full house of botanists at the Natural History Museum.