Main Navigation

• Home

• Crop Research

• Varieties

• Business Improvement

• Markets

• Education

• Exports

• Food & Nutrition

• Environment

• Industrial

Submenu

Funding and Awards

PhD Studentships

This year's PhD students at the HGCA PhD symposium at Harper Adams

PhD Studentships

HGCA is actively involved in raising the profile of agricultural R&D within the young science community. The first organised suite of PhD projects were funded in 2002 and funding has been secured to enable HGCA to support new PhD projects up to 2013.

This programme of studentships is demonstrably benefiting the industry through innovative, relevant research and through training the next generation of scientists to undertake research appropriate to the industry's needs. Consequently, the HGCA Research & Knowledge Transfer Committee is inviting applications for PhD projects starting autumn 2012 to spring 2013. Applications should help us address the research priorities outlined in the current R&D strategy.

A budget of £37.5k per project has been allocated to this call. There is funding for three successful proposals.

Proposal forms and Guidelines 

Postgraduate Research Projects   (53kb)

PhD Studentship Application Form   (140kb)

HGCA PhD Application Guidelines   (68kb) 

Details of each current project can be found by clicking on the title-link below.  All students attend the annual student symposium to present their research progress, where they can gain advice and feedback from HGCA staff. For more information on the PhD programme email research@hgca.com 

PhD's in progress  

Starting in 2010 / 11

Abbie Mason – Nottingham University  

3729 - Development of novel methods for detecting and quantifying viable inoculum of Oculimacula yallundae and O. Acuformis

Eyespot is considered the most damaging stem-base disease of cereals. The aim of the project is to  determine the role of inoculum quantity and viability from different sources (crop debris, infected leaf sheaths, stems) in disease development throughout the growing season, with the aim to identify if there are any predictive relationships between this and yield loss. This will help with more accurate eyespot disease forecasting.

Graham Halcro – Cranfield University

3728 - Site specific land management of cereal crops based on proximal soil sensing

Aims to improve the accuracy of soil sampling techniques, utilising a fusion of high resolution data collected from a collection of sensors on soil and cereal crops, to understand and establish new methodologies on land management for cereal crop cultivation including fertilisation and tillage.

Selcan Alptekin – Rothamsted Research

3656 - Investigating the interaction of the methylene dioxyphenol moiety with resistance to associated P450s 

Looking to optimise  methylene dioxyphenol moiety (pesticide) effectiveness against pests whilst minimising the effects on beneficial insects.

Toby Townsend – Nottingham University

3741 - Bioenergy from wheat straw

This project aims to generate data that could usefully inform the recommended varieties list for a given set of relative output prices for grain and straw.  An integrated aim of the study would thus be to use the methodologies and results developed within this research programme to inform grower decision making. 

Starting in 2009 / 10  

Alex Coleman – JIC

3516 Transmission and spread of turnip yellows virus (TuYV) infection in oilseed rape, and its influence on quality traits  

TuYV is potentially limiting the yield of oilseed rape in the UK, but little is known about the disease. This project aims to  investigate the transmission and spread of TuYV in oilseed rape, and establish the impact of this on yield and quality.

Kirtikumar Kondhare – Harper Adams University College

3623 Understanding and regulating pre-maturity alpha-amylase activity in wheat to maintain high Hagberg falling number through improved varieties  

Low Hagberg falling number (HFN) is an intermittent cause of serious economic loss to growers of bread, biscuit, distilling and export wheat and to millers. This project aims to investigate  pre-maturity alpha-amylase (PMA), one of the main causes of this,  to investigate the potential of altering hormone sensitivity to regulate this process.

Anisha Parmar – Nottingham University  

3624 Exploiting resource use efficiency and resilience in ancient wheat species  

Climate change and the increasing cost of artificial fertilisers means that it is important to maximise the Water and Nitrogen Use Efficiency (collectively; Resource Use Efficiency) of modern wheat varieties. This project aims to  evaluate the resource use efficiency of spelt, einkorn and emmer to identify new sources of variation for modern wheat varieties

Laura Flint – Fera  

3625 Identification, prevalence and impacts of viral diseases in UK winter wheat crops  

This project seeks to address three uncertainties about the UK wheat production now and for the future:

1. Identify and measure the prevalence of viral diseases in commercially grown crops

2. Examine the occurrence of viral diseases evident over the past decade, in yield improvement achieved by growers

3. Determine how climate change might alter the importance of endemic and immigrant viral diseases of wheat over the next two decades

Johar Roy – Nottingham University

3690 Improved fermentation of wheat straw  

The aim of the project is to identify traits in winter wheat germplasm that determine enhanced straw fermentation. Optimising straw for fermentation and the production of bioethanol, without compromising grain yield or quality,  will result in 'dual purpose' wheat crops providing a new income stream for growers and alleviate the competition for arable land between crops grown for fuel or food.

Starting in 2008 / 09  

Staphen Kakaire – Harper Adams University College

3478 Integrated management of cyst nematodes in oilseed rape

This project aims to provide an assessment of the distribution and yield losses caused by cyst nematodes in OSR and produce integrated management advice to minimise current and future crop losses. An understanding of the distribution and population densities of cyst nematodes in soil and the relationship between population density and yield loss, will enable growers to make informed management decisions to lessen economic losses.

Nelson Opoku - Harper Adams University College

3479 Study of Fusarium langsethiae infection of cereals  

Identify the pathogenicity and life-cycle of F. langsethiae in UK cereals (a potent producer of mycotoxins HT2 and T2), with the aim to provide the basic information required to allow the development of control strategies to minimise the mycotoxin contamination of cereals.

Vanessa McMillan – Rothamsted Research

3480 Identification and characterisation of resistance to the take-all fungus in wheat  

This project aims to identify and characterise germplasm which can be used to improve the resistance of hexaploid wheat crops to Take-all through conventional breeding. The identification of resistance containing wheat could be used by breeders to identify markers relating to this trait and potentially in future breeding programmes.

Apostolos Pantelogou – Nottingham University

3481 Malt induced Premature Yeast Flocculation, how does the malting process influence PYF activity of malts and what is the mode of action during fermentation  

Premature Yeast Flocculation (PYF) is a recurring issue in brewery fermentations which is of considerable economic significance. This project aims to improve understanding of the mechanism(s) of PYF in brewery fermentations thus providing the malt supply chain with the knowledge to assure malt from a PYF perspective.

Summary of reports and completed projects