Award details

Population dynamics, epidemiology and evolutionary ecology of plants, pathogens and herbivores

Reference	BBS/E/C/00004667
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Dr Frank van den Bosch
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	Rothamsted Research
Department	Rothamsted Research Department
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	523,675
Status	Completed
Type	Institute Project
Start date	01/04/2004
End date	31/03/2008
Duration	48 months

Abstract

This project develops generic modelling approaches to study the population dynamics, epidemiology and evolutionary ecology of plants, pathogens and herbivores. Besides generating generic insight the models will also be used to study specific examples selected from the key pests, diseases, and weeds on UK/EU and developing country crops, and from the key terrestrial ecosystems in the UK. We will develop models to quantify the effect of environmental variables, spatial structure and biological interactions on the dynamics of diseases, herbirvores, and weeds. Key questions relate to invasion, persistence and prevalence in agriculture and (semi) natural ecosystems. Main areas of application: the epidemiology of diseases of combinable crops and their management; population dynamics of herbivores/diseases in spatially structured agricultural systems; management of weeds, herbivores and diseases using crop rotation; the economic optimal management of diseases, herbivores and weeds. We will develop generic models for the evolutionary ecology of plants, pathogens and herbivores. These models will be used to develop generic understanding of how the management of pests and diseases causes evolutionary change in the targeted and non-targeted species. We will further study the evolution of plants and pathogens in (semi) natural systems where the plant community is structured through competition. Main areas of application: the evolution and dynamics of fungicide and insecticide resistance; the evolution and dynamics of virulent pathogen races; the evolution of defence responses of plants to pathogen and herbivore attack; the evolution of sibling-plant pathogens; the evolution of life history characteristics of vector transmitted plant viruses.

Summary

unavailable

Committee	Closed Committee - Agri-food (AF)
Research Topics	X – not assigned to a current Research Topic
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	X - not in an Initiative
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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