Ashleigh Holmes
+44 (0)344 928 5428
The James Hutton Institute
Invergowrie
Dundee DD2 5DA
Scotland UK
Biography
Ashleigh's research interests are in microbial pathogenicity, particularly in the regulation and expression of virulence factors.
Enterohaemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7 are important food-borne pathogens which colonise ruminants as commensals. Disease outbreaks are commonly associated with the consumption of contaminated meat or via direct contact, however a significant number have been attributed to the consumption of fresh produce (such as spinach, lettuce and radishes). During Ashleigh's PhD, she was interested in how type III secretion system effectors, particularly non-LEE encoded effectors, were regulated, expressed and how they contributed to this bacteria’s pathogenesis in mammals. Now, Ashleigh is investigating the pathogenesis of E. coli O157:H7 in plants and the factors required for the bacterium’s interaction with plant tissues.