PhD defence: Robust Wheat without Pesticides - Long-term Strategies
During his PhD studies, Niels Frederik Lanmüller Vestergård investigated how to strengthen wheat resilience to Zymoseptoria tritici using a combination of field trials, glasshouse experiments and genome-wide analyses of elite cultivars.
Info about event
Time
Location
Building 7613, room C101, Lecture Theatre, Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Forsøgsvej 1, 4200 Slagelse
The work showed that variety mixtures can stabilize yields, reduce disease pressure and maintain grain quality, supporting their recent widespread adoption in Danish winter wheat production. The project identified several genetic markers consistently associated with reduced Septoria levels, and because these loci are already present in modern breeding material, they provide readily usable tools for stacking and improving quantitative resistance. The research also explored how pedigree information and marker profiles can guide the design of diverse and agronomically compatible mixtures. Finally, the studies demonstrated that canopy architecture and escape-related traits complement genetic resistance and contribute to durable field performance.
The PhD study was completed at the Department of Agroecology, Faculty of Technical Sciences, Aarhus University, in collaboration with Sejet Plantbreeding, and funding from the Innovation Fund Denmark and the Pajbjerg Foundation.
This summary was prepared by the PhD student.
Time: Tuesday, 4th of February at 13.00
Place: Building 7613, room C101, Lecture Theatre, Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Forsøgsvej 1, 4200 Slagelse.
Title of PhD thesis: Durable Resistance to Zymoseptoria tritici in Winter Wheat: Integrating Pathogen Diversity, Molecular Markers, and Variety Mixtures
Contact information: Niels Frederik Lanmüller Vestergård, e-mail: nfv@sejet.dk, tel.: +45 40576306
Members of the assessment committee:
Associate Professor Hans Jørgen Lyngs Jørgensen, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Senior Scientist Thierry Marcel, Department of Fungal Plant Pathogens, Université Paris-Saclay, France
Senior Researcher Fiona Hay (chair), Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Denmark
Main supervisor:
Senior Researcher Lise Nistrup Jørgensen, Department of Agroecology, Aarhus Universitet, Danmark
Winter Wheat Breeder Finn Borum, Sejet Plantbreeding, Denmark
Co-supervisor:
Professor Mogens Støvring Hovmøller, Department of Agroecology, Aahurs University, Denmark
Assistant Winter Wheat Breeder Winnie Füchtbauer, Sejet Plantbreeding, Denmark
Language: The PhD dissertation will be defended in English
The defence is public.
The PhD thesis is available for reading at the Graduate School of Technical Sciences/GSTS, Ny Munkegade 120, building 1521, 8000 Aarhus C.