Zoe Bernasconi

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PhD position (4 years) available in my group @zmbp-tuebingen.bsky.social. We look for candidates with solid aptitude in computer science to cross disciplines and use cutting edge imaging to understand host infection by destructive plant pathogens.
uni-tuebingen.de/universitaet...

New OA Article: "Virulence on Pm4 kinase-based resistance is determined by two divergent wheat powdery mildew effectors" rdcu.be/eY3ED

AvrPm4 effector / wheat Pm4. The pathogen can evade Pm4 recognition by expressing the suppressor SvrPm4, an RNase-like effector.

With @lukas-kunz.bsky.social @marioncmueller.bsky.social @vwidrig.bsky.social @javicheztin.bsky.social and others

Our new article is now online on @natplants.nature.com! ✨
We identified and characterised AvrPm4 and SvrPm4, a pair of powdery mildew effectors controlling avirulence on the wheat kinase fusion resistance protein Pm4 🌾 check it out ➡️ www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Mutualist-pathogen co-colonisation modulates phosphoinositide signatures at host intracellular interfaces: Nicotiana benthamiana plants expressing biosensors for PI4P and PI(4,5)P2. PI(4,5)P2 was tip-enriched at mutualist structures but evenly distributed around pathogen structures. PI4P was absent from pathogen extrahaustorial membranes but present at invasive hyphae and mutualist interfaces. Co-colonisation triggered PI4P recruitment at pathogen haustoria, and enhanced resistance to P. palmivora. Graphic by Alex Guyon.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi boost plant resilience by remodelling the plant-pathogen membrane interface
Check-out the latest paper from @alexguyon.bsky.social & @dromius.bsky.social
📖 doi.org/10.1016/j.ce... in @cp-cellreports.bsky.social
News article www.slcu.cam.ac.uk/news/arbuscu...

Dual recognition of structurally unrelated mildew effectors underlies the broad-spectrum resistance of Pm3e in wheat Broad-spectrum resistance genes are highly valuable for sustainable crop protection, yet the molecular basis of their activity is often unknown. The Pm3 allelic series in wheat encodes NLR receptors t...

A wheat NLR conferring broad-spectrum resistance against powdery mildew by recognizing two structurally diverse AVR effectors. Interested? Check out our newest preprint: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Six years ago, I started at the MPIPZ with a head full of ideas. What a journey. I’m thrilled to share that, from Jan 2026, I will be moving to Zurich as a chaired associate professor at the University of Zurich.
A new chapter, and plenty of roots still to grow. Can’t wait for the adventure ahead!

With @javicheztin.bsky.social @mateasheuberger.bsky.social @brandewulff.bsky.social @vwidrig.bsky.social and others 🌿

Check out our new pre-print! ✨
We cloned AvrWTK4, the first wheat powdery mildew effector recognised by a tandem kinase protein, and show that an HMA-like integrated domain in WTK4 acts as pathogen decoy. Discover the whole story on bioRxiv ⬇️

Beat Keller from Uni Zürich giving the final keynote of the Powdery mildew workshop #2025ISMPMI Overview of a whole very very successful career in the field!

Virulence on Pm4 kinase-based resistance is determined by two divergent wheat powdery mildew effectors The wheat resistance gene Pm4 encodes a kinase fusion protein and has gained particular attention as it confers race-specific resistance against two major wheat pathogens: powdery mildew and blast. He...

Check out our work on virulence on Pm4 controlled not by one, but two effectors! Avirulence vs. Suppression, a beautiful case of the arms race between wheat and mildew. Work led by @zoebernasconi.bsky.social , Aline Herger, Pilar Caro, and @lukas-kunz.bsky.social 😍🌱🦠!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...