#13 Tracing Adaptation: Population Genetics meets Plant Pathology – With Prof. Dr. Ralph Hückelhoven and Prof. Dr. Aurélien Tellier
05.03.2026 46 min
Zusammenfassung & Show Notes
In this episode, we explore the evolutionary dynamics between plants and their pathogens through the lenses of population genetics and plant pathology. Our guests, Prof. Dr. Ralph Hückelhoven and Prof. Dr. Aurélien Tellier, from the Technical University of Munich discuss how genome data helps trace adaptation in both crops and microbes, and how models reveal signatures of natural selection. A special focus lies on the barley powdery mildew fungus Blumeria hordei, whose genome is dominated by transposable elements – mobile DNA sequences that may drive rapid evolution and the emergence of new effector genes. From fungal infection strategies to plant immune responses and sustainable agriculture, this episode highlights how evolution shapes plant-microbe interactions.
Image credit (Prof. Dr. Ralph Hückelhoven): Tom Freudenberg
Image credit (Prof. Dr. Ralph Hückelhoven): Tom Freudenberg
More about this topic:
- Bourque G, Burns KH, Gehring M, Gorbunova V, Seluanov A, Hammell M, Imbeault M, Izsvák Z, Levin HL, Macfarlan TS, Mager DL, Feschotte C. Ten things you should know about transposable elements. Genome Biol. 2018 Nov 19;19(1):199. doi: 10.1186/s13059-018-1577-z. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13059-018-1577-z
- Cornille, A., Ebert, D., Stukenbrock, E., Rodriguez de la Vega, R.C., Tiffin, P., Croll, D., and A. Tellier (2022) Unraveling coevolutionary dynamics using ecological genomics, Trends Genet, Volume 38, Issue 10, 1003 - 1012 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tig.2022.05.008
- Horvath R., Minadakis N., Bourgeois Y., and AC Roulin (2024) The evolution of transposable elements in Brachypodium distachyon is governed by purifying selection, while neutral and adaptive processes play a minor role eLife 12:RP93284, https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.93284.3
- Müller MC, Brumm S, Hu Y, Kemen E, Lahaye T, Hückelhoven R (2026) Diversify and conquer: How effector diversity is shaped by host–microbe co-evolution. PLOS Pathog. 22: e1013870. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1013870
- Nottensteiner M, Zechmann B, McCollum C, Hückelhoven R (2018) A Barley powdery mildew fungus non-autonomous retrotransposon encodes a peptide that supports penetration success on barley. J. Exp. Bot. 69:3745-3758.