MINNA URSULA PIRHONEN

I have background in molecular sciences and hold MSc in Molecular Genetics from University of Helsinki. I got my PhD degree from Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences with thesis describing the molecular characterization of virulence determinants of soft rot bacteria rotting plants. At the moment I hold a university lecturer position, equivalent to associate professor, in applied bacteriology at the University of Helsinki. My task is to do basic and molecular research related to plant pathology, especially plant pathogenic bacteria. I am a group leader and run a research group focusing on plant pathogenic bacteria, especially their ecology, virulence mechanisms, genomics and host responses. I have experience of soft rot bacteria and Pseudomonads, and recently Liberibacter, and have worked on various host plants, such as Arabidopsis and potato. I also teach topics related to my expertise on plant pathology courses on BSc, MSc and PhD levels. My H-index is 21.