- Contact details:
- wenboma@tsl.ac.uk
- Part of
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Biography
I started my independent academic career as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California Riverside in 2006. I was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2012 and Full Professor in 2016. In July 2020, I joined The Sainsbury Laboratory as a Senior Group Leader.
My research program aims to unravel the molecular intricacies of the co-evolutionary arms race between plants and microbial pathogens. We focus on effector proteins – key virulence factors that are delivered by pathogenic microbes into plant cells during infection to directly manipulate host cellular processes especially immunity – to understand fundamental principles of microbial pathogenesis. Using this knowledge, we are also developing strategies to control economically important pathogens.
I was awarded the Schroth Faces of the Future Award (2012) and the Ruth Allen Award (2021) from the American Phytopathological Society (APS). I am an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and elected member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). I am also an elected Board Director of the International Society of Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions.