Staff profile

Qualifications

Kim Plummer was awarded a Bachelor of Science Hons (1985) and a Diploma in Education (1984) from the University of New England, NSW. She gained her PhD from The University of Melbourne in 1995.  She worked at HortResearch, NZ, for 9 months, then was appointed as a lecturer at The University of Auckland, where she worked for 10 years.  In 2005 she joined our department as a lecturer in Plant Biotechnology.

Teaching areas

• BIO1OF - Organization and Function of Cells and Organisms
• BIO1PS - Plant Science
• BOT3PB - Plant Biotechnology - analysis of plant gene function, plant genomics and genetics
• AGR3SPP - Sustainable Plant Production

Research interests

My research is focused on the interactions of pathogenic fungi and plants.

Currently, fungicides are used to prevent losses due to fungal diseases. It is anticipated that these diseases will become more economically important as fungicides are phased out (due to health risks and fungicide resistance) or as pathogens adapt to overcome these chemicals.
The main goal of my research is to understand the mechanisms involved in interactions between fungal pathogens and their plant hosts. The ultimate aim will be to identify and isolate the genes involved in these interactions with a view to improving the plant's natural resistance barriers to diseases and pests.  The focus of our research is the molecular basis of plant-pathogen interactions and development of white rot (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) and apple scab disease (Venturia inaequalis); and evolution of sex in Botrytis cinerea (utilizing genomics, proteomics and cytological techniques). The main goal of this research is to understand the mechanisms involved in interactions between fungal pathogens and their hosts with a view to isolating the genes determining the interactions.  Key developmental stages are being identified as targets for control. The long-term aim is to develop strategies for sustainable plant disease control.

Our focus is on the identification of genes involved in the interaction of the fungal pathogens with their host We are specifically identifying factors that are involved in pathogenicity, host recognition and host resistance responses. This work is in collaboration with researchers at University of Florida, USA, Lincoln University, NZ, HortResearch, NZ. The long-term focus is on the development of strategies for sustainable plant disease resistance.

Recent publications and presentations

• Joanna K Bowen, Carl H Mesarich, Jonathan Rees-George, Wei Cui, Anna Fitzgerald, Joe Win, Kim M Plummer, Matthew D Templeton (2009) Candidate effector gene identification in the ascomycete fungal phytopathogen Venturia inaequalis by expressed sequence tag analysis. Molecular Plant Pathology 10(3): 431- 448.
• Nataliya Kucheryava, Joanna K. Bowen, Paul W. Sutherland, Joshua J. Conolly, Carl H. Mesarich, Erik H.A. Rikkerink, Eric Kemen, Kim M. Plummer, Matthias Hahn and Matthew D. Templeton (2008) Two novel Venturia inaequalis genes induced upon morphogenetic differentiation during infection and in vitro growth on cellophane. Fungal Genetics and Biology 45: 1329-1339.
• Rachel Powney, Kim M. Plummer, Jo Luck, Brendan Rodoni, Steven V. Beer (2008) Evaluation of PCR-based protocols for the detection of Erwinia amylovora. Acta Horticulturae, 793 pp. 505-512. (ISBN 978-90-66055-11-7, ISSN 0567-7572 ISHS Acta Horticulturae 793 XI International Workshop on Fire Blight.
• XingZhang Tong, Xiuwen Zhang, Kim M. Plummer, Kathryn M. Stowell, Patrick A. Sullivan, and Peter C. Farley GcSTUA, an APSES transcription factor, is required for generation of appressorial turgor pressure and full pathogenicity of Glomerella cingulata. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions (in press March 2007).

• Nadeesha R. Ileperuma, Sean D. G. Marshall, Christopher J. Squire, Heather M. Baker, John G. Oakeshott, Robyn J. Russell, Kim M. Plummer, Richard D. Newcomb and Edward N. Baker (2007) High Resolution Crystal Structure of the Plant Carboxylesterase AeCXE1, from Actinidia eriantha, and its Complex with a High Affinity Inhibitor Paraoxon. Biochemistry 46 (7): 1851-1859

• Joanne L Simons, Carolyn A Napoli, Bart J Janssen, Kim M Plummer, and Kimberley C Snowden (2007) Analysis of the DECREASED APICAL DOMINANCE (DAD) genes of Petunia hybrida in the control of axillary branching. Plant Physiology143: 697-706

• C.T. Turner, M.W. Davy, R.M. MacDiarmid, K.M. Plummer, N.P. Birch and R.D. Newcomb. (2006) RNA interference in the light brown apple moth, Epiphyas postvittana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) induced by double-stranded RNA feeding. Insect Molecular Biology: 15 (3): 383-391

• Weld, R.J., Plummer, K.M., Carpenter, M.A. & Ridgway, H.J. (2006) Approaches to Functional Genomics in Filamentous Fungi. Cell Research 16: 31-44

• Bus V.G.M., Rikkerink E.H.A., van de Weg E.W., Gardiner S.E., Bassett H.C.M., Kodde L.P., Parisi L., Laurens F.N.D., Rusholme R., Meulenbroek B. and Plummer, K.M. (2005) The Vr and Vx scab resistance genes in two differential hosts derived from Russian apple R12740-7A map to the same linkage group of apple. Molecular Breeding 15: 103-116

• Fitzgerald, A.M., van Kan J.A.L., Plummer, K.M. (2004) ‘Simultaneous Silencing of Multiple Genes in the Apple Scab Fungus, Venturia inaequalis, by Expression of RNA with Chimeric Inverted Repeats’. Fungal Genetics and Biology Volume 41, Issue 10, 963-971

• Bus V.G.M., Laurens F.N.D., van de Weg W.E., Rusholme R.L., Rikkerink E.H.A., Gardiner S.E., Bassett H.C.M., Kodde L.P. and Plummer K.M. (2005) The Vh8 locus of a new gene-for-gene interaction between Venturia inaequalis and the wild apple Malus sieversii is closely linked to the Vh2 locus in M. pumila R12740-7A. New Phytologist 166 (3): 1035-1049

• Plummer, K.M., Clark, S.J., Ellis, L.M., Loganathan, A., AL-Samarrai, T. H., Rikkerink, E. H. A., Sullivan, P.A., Templeton, M.D., Farley, P.C. (2004) Analysis of a secreted aspartic peptidase disruption mutant of Glomerella cingulata. European Journal of Plant Pathology 110: 265-274

• Win, J, Greenwood, D.R., Plummer, K.M. (2003) Characterisation of a protein from Venturia inaequalis that induces necrosis in Malus carrying the Vm resistance gene. Physiological and Molecular Plant Pathology, 62 (4): 193-202

• Fitzgerald, A.M., Mudge, A. M., Gleave, A., Plummer, K.M. (2003) Agrobacterium and PEG-mediated transformation of the phytopathogen Venturia inaequalis. Mycological Research 107 (7): 803-810

  Marshall, S.D.G. Putterill, J.J., Plummer, K.M. and Newcomb, R.D. The Carboxylesterase Gene Family from Arabidopsis thaliana. Journal of Molecular Evolution 57 (5): 487-500

• Plummer, K.M. (2002) Proteomics and genomics tools for the war on apple scab. NZ Bio Science. 11 (4), 38-41.

• Bowen, J., Lay-Yee, M., Plummer, K.M., Ferguson, I. (2002) The heat shock response is involved in thermotolerance in suspension-cell cultured applefruit cells. Journal of Plant Physiology 159, 599-606

• Stehmann, C., Pennycook, S., Plummer, K.M. (2001) Molecular identification of a sexual interloper: the pear pathogen, Venturia pirina, has sex on apple. Phytopathology 91 (7), 633-641

• Plummer, K.M. (2003) Plant Pests and Diseases: Fungal Diseases. In Encyclopedia of Applied Plant Sciences, Eds., B Thomas, DJ Murphy, BG Murray, Elsevier, London UK, pp 223-230.

• Plummer, K.M. (2003) GM of pest and disease resistance: Fungal pathogens. In Encyclopedia of Applied Plant Sciences, Eds., B Thomas, DJ Murphy, BG Murray, Elsevier, London UK, pp 253-258.

• Plummer, K.M., Win, J., Greenwood, D. R. (2003) Characterisation of avirulence in the apple scab fungus. Biology of Plant-Microbe Interactions Vol 4 Eds., I Tikhonovich, B Lugtenberg, N Provorov. International Society for Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions, St. Petersburg, Russia. Pages 157-161.

• Bus V.G.M., Plummer K.M., Rikkerink E., Luby J. Evaluation of the pathogenicity of two scab isolates from the Vf-resistant apple cultivar 'Baujade'. Integrated control of Pome Fruit Diseases IOBC WPRS Bulletin 23:231-237. (2000)