Our four main research themes
Our research is centered around investigating apoplastic (extracellular) plant proteins. From a plant biology perspective we study the manipulation of apoplastic hydrolases by microbes and unravel pathogen recognition in the apoplast. From the technology perspective we pioneer chemical proteomics in plant science and use Structure Predictions by AI to predict extracellular plant-pathogen interactions. From the perspective of applied science, we improve molecular pharming by depleting secreted proteases that degrade secreted recombinant proteins, and by removing immunity genes that hamper transient expression.