Dana MacGregor

"In my job, I need to be able to follow protocols accurately, but also be able to adapt them when they don't work or aren't fit-for-purpose. I need to teach people how to do things and convince audiences, large and small, that I am a trustworthy expert. I also need to learn from others all the time, reading the literature and going to seminars to find out what advances others have made. Therefore, to be successful, I need lots of skills from various personality types. I am a coach, a developer and an influencer, as well as many other things every day! "

"If I am successful at my job, then there will be fewer weeds in agricultural fields and when there are fewer weeds in agricultural fields, then there is more food that can be produced. My job is to understand how weeds can survive despite the fact that we try to kill them every way we possibly can. Most of my scientific career has been looking at what genes and proteins are involved in allowing plants to survive. I am trained as an Arabidopsis Molecular Geneticist and my work has been investigating how plants change their developmental in response to environmental challenges. My work has characterised the molecular responses that let environmental inputs alter developmental outputs so that the plant, or their seeds, can survive. Weeds are really good at surviving even when they shouldn’t. So at Rothamsted what I am doing is taking all of the knowleldge I have gained and applying it to understanding how weeds survive in the agri-environment and through this understanding I can find weaknesses that can be exploited. "

"After high school, I got my Biochemistry and Molecular Biology foundation at Dickinson College (’98-‘02 Batchelors in Science summa cum laude with honours). Then I went to earn my PhD (‘02-‘08) under Dr Jocelyn Malamy at the University of Chicago sponsored by a NIH Molecular & Cellular Biology Training Grant. My work focused on understanding how the Arabidopsis thaliana root system architecture is altered in response to drought. After Chicago, I moved to England and did two post-doctoral positions with Steven Penfield. The first, a BBSRC-funded SABR project (‘08-‘13), focused on how the Arabidopsis circadian clock can selectively use or choose to ignore environmental cues while it maintains a 24-hour period. My second postdoc (‘13-‘16), looked at how seed dormancy is regulated by genetics and the environment. In 2017, I was a Knowledge Exchange Fellowship at Durham University as part of the HEFCE funded N8 Agrifood Resilience Programme. It was during this time that I started to apply the molecular knowledge I had to agricultural weeds and brought this work to RRes in ‘18. "

"I have an amazing 5-year old daughter who wants to be a Scientist (or a ballerina) when she grows up and I play football in co-ed leagues in the area. I used to be quite a serious musician, singing or playing oboe and bassoon in various bands and orchestras, but for the most part now I am 'just' an audience member. I love walking and hiking and going on adventures with my family where we explore the world around us. "

"First thing I typically do is my 'greenhouse rounds' where I check on my plants, watering and arranging them as needed, or checking on their growth stages. Things don't always grow at the same rates all year around, so timings often need to be adjusted and new plants started. After the greenhouse rounds I check my emails and respond to those that are urgent. I make sure that my schedule for the day includes all the meetings I need to attend and that I've blocked out time to prepare for the ones I need to lead. I then split the rest of my day between writing plans for new projects or summaries of finished ones, helping others with their science, or doing experiments myself. Some days it is all of one and none of the other, but I like to try to mix these activities up. I also teach quite regularly and give seminars / webinars. Those take time to plan and deliver, so must be scheduled in. "

"B.S. with honours - Biochemistry and Molecular Biology - Dickinson College, Carlisle PA - 2002 PhD - Molecular Genetics and Cellular Biology - University of Chicago, IL - 2008Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy - Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, University of Exeter - 2013"