Zoe Ferguson
I am a NorthWestBio PhD student, primarily located at the University of Glasgow, with secondary supervision at Lancaster University. Prior to starting my PhD, I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Glasgow in Molecular and Cellular Biology with Plant Science. Throughout my studies I developed my interest in using fundamental molecular biology research to provide solutions related to food security as we face global climate destruction.
My PhD project is focused on stomata - the microscopic pores on the surface of plant leaves which allow them to take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for photosynthesis, but which also act as routes of water loss. Stomata can be thought of as microscopic mouths allowing plants to breathe, opening and closing depending on environmental conditions, and connecting carbon and water cycles. As we consider increasing carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere and the increasing incidence of drought worldwide, these mouths are an ideal focus for the potential optimisation of crops.
My project aims to characterise genes implicated in the control of stomatal opening and closing speeds and relating differences in speed to differences in plant performance under a range of environmental conditions. This work will provide fundamental knowledge related to uncharacterised genes and signalling pathways in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and will explore how differences in stomatal speeds can impact plant survival in increasingly unpredictable and extreme environments.
Outside of the lab, I enjoy going to local gigs, painting, reading, and hiking.