FABI excellence shines through at UP’s Autumn Graduations 2018-05-13
More than 30 postgraduate students affiliated with FABI were awarded their degrees at the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences’ Autumn Graduation ceremonies in April. Six FABIans were awarded their doctoral degrees, while 12 received their MSc degrees. Eighteen BSc Hons graduates who completed their research projects at FABI the previous year were also capped. FABI congratulates all the graduates on their remarkable achievements!
Listed below are the graduates with their thesis and dissertation titles:
PhD's
Phytophthora species diversity associated with native and non-native forests in South Africa.
Supervisor: Prof MJ Wingfield
Co-supervisors: Prof J Roux, Prof TI Burgess (Murdoch University, Australia)
Drought stress-induced changes in the soybean nodule transcriptome
Supervisor: Dr Juan Vorster
Co-supervisor: Dr PDR van Heerden
Population genetics and ecology of Fusarium circinatum on Pinus species in eastern South Africa.
Supervisor: Prof J Roux
Co-supervisors: Prof ET Steenkamp; Prof MJ Wingfield
Dr Tinyiko Mokoena
Expression and Purification of an efficacious recombinant Pulpy Kidney subunit vaccine made in N. benthamiana.
Supervisor: Dr RK Chikwamba (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)
Co-supervisors: Dr E Chakauya (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), Dr MC Crampton (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), Dr TL Tsekoa (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)
Genome-based systematics of taxa in the Erwiniaceae.
Supervisor: Prof SN Venter
Co-supervisors: Prof ET Steenkamp; Dr MPA Coetzee
Fungi, insects and abiotic factors associated with the death of Euphorbia ingens in South Africa.
Supervisor: Prof J Roux
Co-supervisors: Prof MJ Wingfield, Prof DL Six (The University of Montana, USA)
MSc's
Host preference of the invasive Glycaspis brimblecombei and host specificity of its parasitoid, Psyllaephagus bliteus.
Supervisor: Prof BP Hurley
Co-supervisor: Prof B Slippers
Caitlin Botha
The genetics of sexual reproduction in Amylostereum areolatum.
Supervisor: Prof B Slippers
Co-supervisors: Dr MPA Coetzee; Dr MA van der Nest
Horizontal gene transfer in eukaryotes with a special focus on the nematode Deladenus siricidicola.
Supervisor: Prof B Slippers
Co-supervisors: Prof. O Reva, Dr RE Pierneef, Ms Alisa Postma Smidt
Studies on Puccinia psidii and Cryphonectriaceae on Myrtales in Colombia.
Supervisor: Prof MJ Wingfield
Co-supervisors: Prof J Roux, Dr AR McTaggart
Megan Harris
Characterization of viruses associated with Grapevine Leafroll disease in Vitis rootstocks in South Africa.
Supervisor: Prof G Pietersen
Dorah Mwangola
Population genetics of Chrysoporthe austroafricana in Southern Africa.
Supervisor: Dr NA van der Merwe
Co-supervisor: Prof J Roux
Taxonomy and biology of the plant pathogenic fungus Thielaviopsis basicola.
Supervisor: Prof. ZW de Beer
Co-supervisors: Prof. BD Wingfield, Prof. MJ Wingfield, Dr A Duong, Dr A Hammerbacher
Characterization of Burkholderia isolates associated with root nodules of Vachellia karoo in South Africa.
Supervisor: Prof SN Venter
Co-supervisor: Prof ET Steenkamp
New Calonectria and Cylindrocladiella species from Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Supervisor: Prof. MJ Wingfield
Co-supervisors: Dr I Barnes, Dr S Chen
Stefan Priem
Characterisation of the cellulose biosynthesis cluster and its role in Pectobacterium adherence to biotic and abiotic surfaces.
Supervisor: Prof LN Moleleki
Co-supervisor: Prof TA Coutinho
Ophiostomatoid fungi associated with pine-infesting bark beetles in Guatemala.
Supervisor: Prof. ZW de Beer
Co-supervisors: Prof. MJ Wingfield, Dr A Duong
Optimizing Illumina de novo transcriptome assembly for non-model plants.
Supervisor: Dr E Mizrachi
Co-supervisor: Prof. F Joubert
BSc Honours
Marlise Buys
Lomile Khoete
Angelique Jacobsohn
Mancha Mabaso
Kayleigh Maier
Modjadji Makwela
Fezile Mthunzi
Ashleigh Smith
Francois Viljoen
(Group photo credit: UP/EyeScape)