The switch from avirulence to virulence: Exploiting Microsporidian to provide insight into mechanisms, host interaction, co-infection and pollution tr

Microsporidia are a diverse group of unicellular obligate intracellular parasite, thought to represent the earliest diverging fungi. Long known to have notable zoonotic potential, they can cause fatal microsporidiosis. Efforts to develop treatments are hampered by ignorance of microsporidian molecular biology.

The aims of the PhD project are 1: To characterize the host gene pathways altered by specific microsporidian parasites. 2: To identify host genes linked to reduced parasite virulence. 3: To reveal parasite genes linked to reduced virulence. 4: Identify the initiating events that result in parasite manipulation of host molecular biology. 5: Understand the importance of gene swapping due to hyperparasitism and co-infection.