Responsibilities within Bangor University

Member of Henfaes Research Centre Committee

Module organiser for Honours Projects (DXX/C 3701) and Plant Diversity and Conservation (DXX 2021)

Supervise Research Postrgraduates

Former (2016-2022) Director of Impact and Engagement, College of Environmental Science and Enginering

Tel: 01248 388655 (from U.K.)  +44 1248 388655 (International)

Web: Research Gate Twitter @kasSteele

Webinar: KASP markers for rice breeders

YouTube: Rice growing at Henfaes

• Profesiynol: Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching in Higher Education
  2006
• PhD: Molecular Plant Pathology
  University of Nottingham, 1998
• MSc: Applied Genetics
  School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, University of Birmingham, 1994
• BSc: Biology
  University of Nottingham, 1993

Current Postgraduate Research Supervised by Katherine Steele

• KESS 2 (With Sarvari Research Trust) - Tim Beard - Tomato early blight - identification of genetic sources of resistance to Alternaria solani
• Commonwealth Scholar (2022-2023) Kamran Yaqoob - Identification of Genetic Variations of Wx Alleles for Diversified Starch Composition and Glycemic Index of Pakistani Rice Cultivars
• I also supervise projects for taught masters students

Recent PhD research projects supervised 

• AHDB - Beverly Agesa - Screening and performance of phosphorus efficient cereal cultivars for future food security 
• KESS (With Maelor Forest Nursery) - Anastasia Atucha Zamkova – Identifying molecular markers for frost tolerance in Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis)

• Breeding strategies to improve blight resistance in Sarpo potatoes

WILLING TO SUPERVISE PROJECTS IN THE FOLLOWING GENERAL AREAS:

Crop genetics – with emphasis on rice, barley, tomato, potato and the genetic and environmental effects on their abiotic and biotic stress resistance. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, functional foods; sustainable food, fuel and fibre production and plant pathology. Projects involving molecular markers, genomics, field or glasshouse experiments and participatory methods/citizen science will be considered. Enquiries welcome.

Teaching

Module organiser for: DXX3701 (Honours Project) and DXX2021 (Plant Diversity and Conservation)

Contribute to a range of other modules including DXX1001, DXX2000, BNS2002, BSM4013

My lab is focused on tackling global food security issues. We use genomics tools and in work in partnership with growers, breeders and industry to develop novel crop varieties for sustainable agriculture. Current projects use genetic diversity in wild relatives and landraces and analysis of quantitative traits to inform marker-assisted selection for trait improvement in economically important species.

KASP genomic selection: improving farmers' livelihoods through better rice varieties (2015-2021)

Bangor University colleagues on this project are Prof. John Witcombe (Nepal Breeding Consultant) and Dr Mark Quinton-Tulloch (Bioinformatics Research, 2015-2020). 

2022

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2021

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2020

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2019

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2018

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2015

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2013

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2012

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2011

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2009

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2008

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2007

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2006

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2005

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2004

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2002

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2001

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2000

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2020

• Agronomy (Cyfnodolyn)

  Editor

  5 Rhag 2020 →

  Gweithgaredd: Adolygu cyhoeddiadau cymheiriaid (Aelod o fwrdd golygyddol)
• Use of rice KASP markers in India, Pakistan, Nepal and UK

  Presentation of research done in Innovate UK funded research and Defra funded consultancy at Bangor University with national and international partners

  11 Tach 2020

  Cysylltau:

  • https://twitter.com/cpd_services/status/1458471565973200902
  • https://twitter.com/cpd_services/status/1460585963881644032
  Gweithgaredd: Sgwrs wadd (Siaradwr)
• Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems (Cyfnodolyn)

  Guest Associate Editor in Crop Biology and Sustainability

  15 Medi 2020 →

  Gweithgaredd: Adolygu cyhoeddiadau cymheiriaid (Aelod o fwrdd golygyddol)

2016

• International Association for Cereal Science and Technology: Rice Working Group (Sefydliad allanol)

  Member of International Association for Cereal Science and Technology: Rice Working Group

  1 Awst 2016 – 31 Gorff 2026

  Gweithgaredd: Aelodaeth o bwyllgor (Cadeirydd)

• KESS II Phd with Savari Research Trust BUK2169

  01/10/2019 – 31/01/2023 (Wedi gorffen)

• Identification of biological assays to authenticate Basmati rice varieties

  01/01/2019 – 30/09/2019 (Wedi gorffen)

• KASP genomic selection: improving farmers' livelihoods through better rice varieties

  01/08/2017 – 28/02/2022 (Wedi gorffen)

  Disgrifiad

  This project directly addresses the challenge of improved food security and livelihoods for international development. For about half a billion people in Asia, most of them poor, rice provides over 50% of the caloric supply so the size and stability of the rice harvest is crucial. The simplest way to increase yields is by the breeding of new rice varieties with greater resistance to diseases and pests and improved tolerance to stresses. To help in this breeding all Asian national rice breeding programmes use DNA markers. This project will develop LGC genomics' proprietary molecular technologies (called KASP) by providing thousands of new KASP markers. By the end of the project, KASP will become the marker of choice for rice breeders through greater choice of markers (available for any cross), reduced costs (allowing a three-fold increase in the size of the breeding programme) and increased speed and reliability. This will provide a revolution in rice breeding by making it possible to do genome-wide, selection instead of selecting for markers at a few target traits. A single improved rice variety can increase harvest value by millions of pounds a year so improved rice breeding methods in all Asian countries will have great impact on improved food security and improved farmers' livelihoods.

  Cysylltau:

  • Overview on Gateway to Research
  • https://blog.lgcgroup.com/tag/bangor-university/
  • Project website hosted by Project Manager

• KESS II PhD project with Maelor Forest Nurseries BUK2101

  01/02/2017 – 31/08/2022 (Wedi gorffen)

  Disgrifiad

  The objective is to develop selectable markers for frost tolerance in Sitka Spruce that will allow our industrial partner to breed resistant trees.

  Cysylltau:

  • PhD Student profile

• KESS II PhD project with Savari Research BUK267

  01/04/2016 – 31/08/2019 (Wedi gorffen)

  Disgrifiad

  Breeding strategies to improve blight resistance in Sarpo potatoes

• KASP technology to improve new rice varities and farmer livelihoods.

  01/05/2015 – 10/10/2020 (Wedi gorffen)

  Cysylltau:

  • Slides presented at Monogram 2017
  • https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=131781

• Towards national listing of novel functional food barley variety

  05/08/2014 – 31/05/2015 (Wedi gorffen)

  Cysylltau:

  • http://barley.bangor.ac.uk/index.php.en

• Resolving biological bottlenecks in macroalgal biofuel production (SuBBSea)

  31/07/2014 – 19/12/2017 (Wedi gorffen)

  Cysylltau:

  • https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=BB%2FK020552%2F1

• Training

  01/10/2009 – 30/09/2016 (Wedi gorffen)

  Disgrifiad

  Developing capacity for participatory and marker assisted plant breeding to mitigate low crop productivity and poor food security (CAPACITATE East Africa)

  A three year project funded by the European Union African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Science and Technology Transfer Programme

  Project Goal: Improvement in the capacity of crop research in East Africa to produce farmer-acceptable crop varieties and enhanced food security.

  Although the funding for this project has now ended the network is still continuing.

  Cysylltau:

  • CAPACITATE East Africa webpage
  • http://capacitate-ea.bangor.ac.uk/

Previously, I worked in Bangor Universiy's former Centre for Arid Zone Studies (CAZS) as a Research Officer and was PI on three rice research projects funded by the DFID Plant Sciences Research Programme (1998-2006).

I am a member of the UK Rice Research Consortium (UKRRC)