Andy Stephenson

My research focuses on the role of inbreeding and genetic variation on the establishment and transmission of plant diseases. My research has three interrelated themes

1) Interrelationships among inbreeding, herbivory, and transmission of bacterial and viral diseases vectored by herbivores

How does inbreeding affect:

• The pattern, timing and magnitude of herbivory?
• Rates of exposure to pathogens transmitted by herbivores?
• When — and the extent to which — plant defense systems respond to herbivores and pathogens?

2) Production of volatile organic compounds that signal herbivores (pathogen vectors)

• How do plant volatiles vary with inbreeding in natural populations? How do herbivores respond to these differences?
• How does the composition of plant volatiles change upon damage by an herbivore or infection by a pathogen?
• Do herbivores/vectors respond differently to the volatile compounds produced by healthy and diseased plants?

3) Impact of the escape of viral resistance transgenes from agricultural crops to wild populations

• How do viral resistance transgenes affect the fitness of plants during introgression into natural populations?
• Is there a cost associated with viral resistance transgenes when the viral disease is not present in the population?
• How do viral resistance transgenes affect non-target pathogens?