Research areas
Plant viruses cause major disease epidemics in important food crops and are a major threat to food security in many countries particularly in the developing world. The predicted warming of the climate caused by environmental change is expected to increase the abundance and geographic range of many insects that spread viruses which in turn may increase the occurrence of virus diseases. Potato is the third largest food crop in the world. Scotland produces high quality seed tubers and approx. 70,000 tonnes are exported annually to the EU and over 30 other countries worldwide. Pests and diseases cause major economic losses by decreased tuber yield and quality and rejection of exports; our work contributes to supporting the seed potato industry.
Viruses are parasites that must take over the host cell’s functions to replicate and produce more virus particles. My research focuses on potato viruses and the role and function of virus coded proteins in disease processes, investigating mechanisms of host susceptibility and resistance. A particular focus is the durability of host resistance under heat stress and the effect of developmental stage on infection processes. This work aims to identify essential host molecules needed for replication and spread and a better understanding of host defence mechanisms. The practical outputs of this work will be to inform more effective methods of disease control. We are working with collaborators in Kenya and Malawi to evaluate mutliple stress tolerant potato genotypes to expand potato production to new lower altitude areas, contributing to the respective Governments strategy to increase the supply of nutritious food and boost farmers incomes.
Other collaborations on virus research include with Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hanghzhou, Zhejiang, and North West A&F University, Yangling, P.R. China
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Selected publications
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Open access
A new simple and effective method for PLRV infection to screen for virus resistance in potato
Cowan, G., MacFarlane, S. & Torrance, L., 1 May 2023, In: Journal of Virological Methods. 315, 5 p., 114691.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Evolution of the One CGIAR’s research and innovation portfolio to 2030: approaches, tools, and insights after the reform
Meinke, H., Ash, A., Barrett, C. B., Smith, A. G., Graff Zivin, J. S., Abera, F., Garcia, M., Just, D. R., Obokoh, N. H., Kadiyala, S., Negra, C., Torrance, L., Beaudreault, A. R. & Boulanger, P., 6 Dec 2023, In: npj Sustainable Agriculture. 1, 8 p., 6.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Allelic variants of a potato HEAT SHOCK COGNATE 70 gene confer improved tuber yield under a wide range of environmental conditions
Campbell, R., Ducreux, L., Cowan, G., Young, V., Chinoko, G., Chitedze, G., Kwendani, S., Chiipanthenga, M., Bita, C. E., Mwenye, O., Were, H., Torrance, L., Sharma, S. K., Hancock, R. D., Bryan, G. J. & Taylor, M., 15 Mar 2022, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Food and Energy Security. Early View, 14 p., e377.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Phloem connectivity and transport are not involved in mature plant resistance (MPR) to Potato Virus Y in different potato cultivars, and MPR does not protect tubers from recombinant strains of the virus
Kumar, P., Cowan, G. H., Squires, J. N., Hackett, C. A., Tobin, A. K., Torrance, L. & Roberts, A. G., Aug 2022, In: Journal of Plant Physiology. 275, 12 p., 153729.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Foresight and trade-off analyses: tools for science strategy development in agriculture and food systems research
Barrett, C. B., Beaudreault, A. R., Meinke, H., Ash, A., Ghezae, N., Kadiyala, S., Nigussie, M., Smith, A. G. & Torrance, L., 14 Jan 2021, In: Q Open. 1, 1, qoaa002.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Natural resistance to Potato virus Y in Solanum tuberosum Group Phureja
Torrance, L., Cowan, G., McLean, K., MacFarlane, S., Al-Abedy, A., Armstrong, M., Lim, T.-Y., Hein, I. & Bryan, G., Mar 2020, In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics. 133, p. 967–980 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
Potato virus Y emergence and evolution from the Andes of South America to become a major destructive pathogen of potato and other solanaceous crops worldwide
Torrance, L. & Talianksy, M. E., 12 Dec 2020, In: Viruses. 12, 12, 14 p., 1430.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
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RNA sequence analysis of diseased groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) reveals the full genome of groundnut rosette assistor virus (GRAV)
Jones, S., Cowan, G., MacFarlane, S., Mukoye, B., Mangeni, B. C., Were, H. & Torrance, L., Feb 2020, In: Virus Research. 277, 197837.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
TERMINAL FLOWER-1/CENTRORADIALIS inhibits tuberization via protein interaction with the tuberigen activation complex
Zhang, X., Campbell, R., Ducreux, L. J. M., Morris, J., Hedley, P. E., Mellado-Ortega, E., Roberts, A. G., Stephens, J., Bryan, G. J., Torrance, L., Chapman, S. N., Prat, S. & Taylor, M. A., 14 Jul 2020, (E-pub ahead of print) In: The Plant Journal. Early View, 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Open access
A functional investigation of the suppression of CpG and UpA dinucleotide frequencies in plant RNA virus genomes
Ibrahim, A., Fros, J., Bertran, A., Sechan, F., Odon, V., Torrance, L., Kormelink, R. & Simmonds, P., 4 Dec 2019, In: Scientific Reports. 9, 14 p., 18359.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review