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Welcome to the Jackson lab web page. The lab is located in the dedicated Microbiology Unit of the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Reading, UK.
My molecular microbiology research focuses on Pseudomonas bacteria and their interaction with plants and animals. Pseudomonas are found in most niches on earth (including clouds!), but we look mainly at the interaction of these bacteria with plants although we have recently expanded to animals such as worms and insects. Many Pseudomonas bacteria, such as Pseudomonas syringae, have specialised over time to attack plants to gain nutrients – the outcome being plant disease in susceptible hosts. Conversely, other Pseudomonas bacteria, such as Pseudomonas fluorescens, have maintained a generalist lifestyle, surviving on whatever nutrients are available in a given environment or seeking out nutrient-rich sources, such as root exudates. Often, these bacteria have the ability to suppress plant disease although the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are poorly understood.
Two distinct yet complementary themes are followed:
Study of the plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae
Study of the plant growth-promoting bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens
More recently, we have started to research the interaction of human pathogenic Escherichia coli O157 with plants, to identfiy the genetic basis for bacterial survival and colonisation of plants. Additionally, a new PhD student has begun working on phage therapy approaches to control plant diseases.
For more details, see the Research section of this site.
