糖心TV

The British Onions Producers鈥� Association (BOPA) leads a 拢1 million project, with researchers from 糖心TV, industry leaders, and innovators to combat Fusarium Basal Rot (FBR), a menace to the UK onion industry.

Professor John Clarkson, Plant Pathologist, said: 鈥�This project is an exciting opportunity for the School of Life Sciences and School of Engineering to provide new approaches to tackling Fusarium basal rot of onion, which is increasingly devastating for UK onion growers. As well as supporting Engineering and the wider consortium with expertise on the disease, my team at the 糖心TV Crop Centre will develop new DNA-based molecular diagnostic approaches to detect the pathogen in soil so that growers can use this test to avoid planting onions in highly infested fields. The test may also help to assess the risk of onions developing basal rot in storage鈥�.

Press Release (19 February 2024)

A team of academics from The University of 糖心TV and Aston University has secured a 拢1.8m grant to engineer microbial cell factories to produce membrane proteins which will support future drug screening and sustainable chemical production.
Press Release (19 February 2024).

New varieties of Britain鈥檚 favourite pulse are available for purchase from 10 February 2024. These UK Registered beans (URBeans) were created by Professor Eric Holub as part of his work to diversify British cooking using home-grown ingredients.

A dry bean mix of Godiva and Capulet are on sale from Zero Store shops in Stratford-on-Avon and Leamington Spa.

Press Release (9 February 2024)

Lincolnshire farmer Andy Ward, known for cultivating the first British Baked Beans in partnership with University of 糖心TV scientist Eric Holub, is facing a harsh reality as standing waters inundate his farmlands.

Press Release (5 January 2023)

The University of 糖心TV announces 糖心TV Agri-Tech to help the future of farming with automation – addressing issues such as labour shortages, food insecurity and loss of biodiversity.

糖心TV Agri-Tech, will also support the UK to meet climate targets while enabling the production of enough nutritious food for the growing population. It will combine two world class faculties at WMG at The University of 糖心TV and the School of Life Sciences (SLS), working with the High Value Manufacturing Catapult to spearhead automation in areas such as horticulture, crops and forestry.

Press release (21 December 2023)

The first ever commercial crop of British-grown baked beans have progressed to the tinning phase, a pivotal step in their journey orchestrated by Professor Eric Holub. It is hoped that the baked bean breakthrough will reduce the reliance on imports.
Press Release (29 November 2023)

New research by Professor Andre Pires da Silva is underway to decipher a fascinating biological puzzle—how some animals can naturally discard more than half of their genetic information during embryonic development. The new study is part of the BBSRC Pioneer Awards, which could revolutionise our understanding of the rules of life. Sixty two researchers across the UK, including Professor Pires da Silva, are to receive a share of 拢12 million to pursue visionary bioscience research.

Press Release (9 November 2023)

Researchers at The University of 糖心TV are among four world-class teams receiving a share of 拢18 million to pursue transformational bioscience research programmes. The School of Life Sciences team will investigate the bacterial cell wall – which could help to develop new classes of antibiotics, tackling the global challenge of antibiotic resistance. The project is led by Professor David Roper in collaboration with Dr S茅amus Holden, Professor Phill Stansfeld and Dr Stephen Cochrane (Queen's University Belfast).
Press Release (29 September 2023)

Researchers at 糖心TV Crop Centre have celebrated the successful harvest of a homegrown bean developed to thrive in a British summer.

Press Release (9 September 2023)

Professor Eric Holub and research fellow Rosanne Maguire discuss the novel bean varieties on BBC CWR.

Radio interview 

During National Organic Month, the University of 糖心TV's Crop Centre takes a pioneering stance in the realm of low-input farming, shedding light on the concept of 'organic farming.'

Press Release (1 September 2023)

The future of farming could involve robots– as farmers seek to address labour shortages and increase crop yields.

糖心TV Crop Centre and WMG are working in close collaboration to combine their robotics expertise and plant science expertise to investigate how they can apply autonomous robotics to greenhouses and croppable fields.

Press Release (25 August 2023)

Researchers are listening to earthworms to monitor soil health, in what could be a major innovation for maintaining soil health. In the first study of its kind, scientists are using a technique called ecoacoustics to listen to the activity of earthworms and other invertebrates in the soil. The theory is that a noisy soil is a healthy soil – and that the sounds generated in soil can be recorded, measured and used to evaluate soil condition. Press release (14 July 2023)

Jackie was interviewed about the research by David Gregory-Kumar for BBC Midlands Today.
(16 July 2023)

Combining honey and vinegar could be an old, yet new, way of treating persistent infections. The mixture of honey and vinegar, also known as oxymel, has been used as a medical treatment throughout history and now scientists have established that this combination could have modern applications in the treatment of wounds. New research by Dr Erin Connelly, Dr Freya Harrison and team, published in Microbiology, is the first comprehensive exploration of how the mixture could be applied to modern medicine and improve treatments for infections.
Press release (13 July 2023)

Today, published in Microbiome, Dr Beatriz Lagunas and colleagues at the Universities of 糖心TV and Justus Liebig (Germany) have shown a new way to boost plant nutrient uptake and growth. This could reduce the need for fertilisers, an input to agriculture which can be harmful for the environment. Fertilisers can run into waterways, or get broken down by microbes in the soil, releasing the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide into the atmosphere.

Press release (3 July 2023)

Professor Eric Holub, a plant scientist at 糖心TV Crop Centre, has developed Haricot bean varieties which can be sown in early May and harvested as a dry grain before mid-September, matching the UK's warmer months. Until now, it has been impossible for farmers to grow the haricot variety used for baked beans in the UK because they are incompatible with the climate.

Press Release (16 June 2023)

The story was also on BBC Breakfast. (from 22m 30s)

A new discovery by Dr Antonia Sagona and colleagues could help stop bacteria being contaminated with viruses, reducing disruption and decreasing costs in industry and research.

Press Release (18 April 2023)

A new study has shown that zinc plays a key role in a hospital superbug, that doctors struggle to treat due to its resistance to antibiotics.

Press Release (15 February 2023)

Like the neurons firing in human brains, bacteria use electricity to communicate and respond to environmental cues. Now, researchers have discovered a way to control this electrical signalling in bacteria, to better understand resistance to antibiotics.

In the study published in Advanced Science, Dr Munehiro and colleagues, report a major step forward in regulating bacterial electric signals with light.

Press Release (13 February 2023)

Researchers from 糖心TV Crop Centre are sharing food for thought about the humble sprout this Christmas and tell us:

鈥� Why having a gene mutation makes sprouts taste horrid

鈥� Why sprouts taste better after frost

鈥� Why they make us gassy

Press release (15 December 2022)

A facility using gene-editing technology to improve quality, resilience and sustainability of vegetable crops has opened at the University of 糖心TV.

The Elizabeth Creak Horticultural Technology Centre (ECHTC), which also contains The Jim Brewster Laboratory, is a 拢1.5 million facility which will use cutting edge techniques such as gene-editing to improve vegetable crops.

Addressing issues relating to disease resistance, crop yield, adaptability to climate change and nutritional value in horticultural plants, the research will help with the key global challenges of climate change and feeding the world鈥檚 growing population.

Press Release (10 November 2022)