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 On valentine's day, Freedom For You grants program finalists Rebecca McDougal and Emily Telfer presented at the Kauri Dieback Symposium in Hokianga. Rebecca and Emily are both senior scientists at Scion, focussing on forest pathology and genetics and understanding the diseases that affect both plantation and native tree species. The Symposium focussed on the latest research in the Kauri dieback area of what scientists and communities have achieved so far, and future plans for managing disease.
The Phytophthora research program, in which Rebecca and Emily are involved, includes Kauri dieback research to look for disease resistance and characterise infection by Phytophthora taxon Agathis (PTA). The identification of resistant trees could be used in a breeding program so that new areas of Kauri can be developed to reduce the likelihood of the trees contracting PTA and increasing survival years. Rebecca also conducts research on PTA diagnostics, where portable qPCR technologies could have a major beneficial impact. Currently, there are issues with the traditional diagnostics methods as the risk of spread is high and a large turnaround time exists between sampling and identification. The future of diagnostics could sit with mobile molecular testing, allowing for real-time qPCR testing out in the forests. At the symposium, Rebecca discussed how a mobile device, like the Freedom4, would create a more efficient mapping process as the area of PTA spread can be determined immediately, as opposed to travelling between the site and the lab to identify infection. The Freedom For You grants program is designed to provide support for remote qPCR projects, with each winner receiving a Freedom4 device. The ten selected finalists are receiving support from Ubiquitome in the form of Freedom4 qPCR reagents and consumables, project design consultation, and technical support, including wet lab processing. Three grant winners will receive a Freedom4 gold standard qPCR mobile device worth USD$25,000. Rebecca and Emily have been chosen as finalists for their work in Kauri dieback research. For more information about Rebecca and Emily’s research and the grants program click here. |
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