The elemental defence hypothesis was first put forward by Boyd and Martens in 1992. It suggested that plants concentrate high levels of heavy metals into their biomass to act as a defence against herbivory. This thesis focused on testing this theory using zinc (Zn) as the accumu…
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Agave tequilana is native to Mexico and famous for its use in the production of alcoholic beverage tequila. Due to the growing demands of tequila it has been intensively cultivated through asexual means resulting in a narrow genetic variability. The crop is extremely prone to in…
The biochemical principles underlining carbohydrate metabolism of ornamental geophytes such as hyacinth and the lily are poorly understood. The present studies were therefore undertaken to investigate the regulation and partitioning of carbohydrates, as well as growth and develo…
This thesis aims to understand the mechanisms involved in pollen transport and deposition in cave environments and the influence of different factors on the composition of the pollen assemblage, with special reference to the problem of the Neanderthal ‘Flower burial’ at Shanidar…
The aim of this project was to enhance our knowledge of how nitrogen is transported and utilised within Brassica napus through the use of proteomics, phenotyping and genetic mapping. It highlights the importance of looking at all possible plant tissues to determine the mechanism…
With global food insecurity on the rise and increased pressures on habitat conservation it is vital to pursue increased efficiencies in plant breeding. New understanding of genetics in the last five decades has provided significant advances in yield gains in most cultivated crop…
FERONIA (FER) is a receptor-like kinase (RLK) involved in a large number of processes in Arabidopsis. FER plays a role in cell elongation, mechanosensing, regulation of seed size, immunity and root hair development. A common theme in many of these processes is the involvement of…
Unlike most animals, plants can regenerate new tissues, organs or an entire organism by changing the developmentally committed program of individual cells - a phenomenon known as totipotency. This unique developmental plasticity of plants has been exploited in agriculture and ho…
Interactions between above ground and root-feeding herbivores can be influenced by changes in plant traits, such as tissue chemistry and morphology. Environmental heterogeneity and perturbations also affect these plant-mediated interactions. Climate change is a multi-faceted phe…
The main aim of the thesis is to explore the interaction between pattern and process in vegetation ecology using a variety of mathematical and statistical methods. Of particular interest is what information about the dynamics of the underlying system can be gained through a sing…
The rhizosphere has a rich fungal microbiome, including parasites, commensals and mutualists. An important group in the rhizosphere are assumed to be the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which live in symbiosis with around 80% of plant species. AMF have been shown to increase…
There is an increasing understanding of the influence seabirds have on island food webs globally, which often arises from the trans-boundary input of nutrients. Seabird-derived nutrients, primarily in the form of guano, can have significant effects on island communities by incre…
The ability of plants to respond to environmental cues is crucial for the success of the organism. Light is an important source of energy for the plant as well as providing information for plant growth and development. Plant responses to the electromagnetic spectrum are controll…
This thesis describes the original and significant development of a hierarchical statistical framework in order to realign fine-scale spatial covariate data. An example of the utilisation of this framework is given within the context of biodiversity modelling. Biodiversity is of…
Many higher plants use self-incompatibil ity (SI) mechanism to prevent inbreeding and thus encouraging outcrossing. Upon a self-challenge in Papaver rhoeas, a Ca2+-dependent-signal ling-cascade is initiated resulting in the destruction ofthe self-pollen by Programmed Cell Death.…
Modern crop varieties contain limited genetic diversity. Demand from an expanding human population requires crop yields to increase substantially, however, a low capacity for adaptation may leave crops susceptible to environmental change, threatening future food security. Crop w…
Whilst juvenile during vegetative growth, plants are incapable of initiating flowering when grown under floral inductive conditions. Understanding juvenility is important since it influences flowering time, which in turn impacts on scheduling of crop production. Daily light inte…
The rhizosphere consists of plant roots and the adjoining soil, which contains a functionally and genetically rich fungal community. The obligate plant symbionts, the mycorrhizal fungi, have been shown to receive substantial quantities of plant-derived C and play an important ro…