Saleha Bakht

I joined the Osbourn lab in September 2000. My background is in the development of tools and resources for genetics and molecular biology in cereals.

In the Osbourn lab I have generated a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library for diploid oat (Avena strigosa) and have assembled a contig spanning a gene cluster required for the synthesis of defence-related metabolites (avenacins). I am currently extending this contig to define the flanks of the gene cluster prior to initiating comparative genomics-based approaches to investigate the origin of the cluster in cereals.  I have also been carrying out crosses to define the different loci required for avenacin synthesis in our extended collection of 100 avenacin-deficient mutants of A. strigosa.

Another part of my work involves heterologous expression of pathway enzymes for functional analysis and to raise antisera for localisation studies.

Funding

Grant in aid to the John Innes Centre from the BBSRC.

Publications

Qi X,Bakht S, Qin B, Leggett M, Hemmings A, Mellon F, Eagles J, Werck-Reichhart D, Schaller H, Lesot A, Melton R, and Osbourn A.A different function for a member of an ancient and highly conserved cytochrome P450 family: From essential sterols to plant defense.  P Natl Acad Sci USA 13 (49): 18848-18853, Dec 5 2006.

Bakht S, Qi X. Ligation-mediated rolling-circle amplification-base approaches to single nucleotide polymorphism detection. Expert Rev. Mol. Diagn. 5(1), 111-116, 2005.

Sinapidou E, Williams K, Nott L, Bakht S, Tor M, Crute I, Bittner-Eddy P, Beynon J. Two TIR : NB : LRR genes are required to specify resistance to Peronospora parasitica isolate Cala2 in Arabidopsis. Plant J 38 (6): 898-909, June 2004.

Qi X, Bakht S, Leggett M, Maxwell C, Melton R, Osbourn A, A gene cluster for secondary metabolism in oat: Implications for the evolution of metabolic diversity in plants. P Natl Acad Sci USA 101 (21): 8233-8238, May 2004.

Qi X, Bakht S, Devos KM, Gale MD, Osbourn A. L-RCA (ligation-rolling circle amplification): a general method for genotyping of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Nucleic Acids Res 29 (22): art. no. e116, Nov 2001

Haralampidis K, Bryan G, Qi X, Papadopoulou K, Bakht S, Melton R, Osbourn A. A new class of oxidosqualene cyclases directs synthesis of antimicrobial phytoprotectants in monocots. P Natl Acad Sci USA 98 (23): 13431-13436, Nov 2001.