Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.

Doctoral Training Partnerships: a range of postgraduate training is funded by the Research Councils. For information on current funding routes, see the common terminology at https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/how-we-fund-studentships/. Training grants may be to one organisation or to a consortia of research organisations. This portal will show the lead organisation only.

MIBTP students undertake a period of training during their first year. This includes compulsory taught modules in statistics, programming, data analysis, AI and mini research projects.

Vine weevil is an economically important pest of UK soft-fruit and ornamental crops that causes millions of pounds worth of damage every year. Controlling vine weevil utilises many elements of integrated pest management (IPM) but growers continue to experience economic losses due to this species. These losses can be largely attributed to a lack of an effective (determined by the sensitivity and reliability of the monitoring tool) monitoring tools leading to ineffective or inappropriate control applications being undertaken. This project will develop a semiochemical-based 'smart' monitoring tool to enable growers to make informed pest management decisions and unlock the full potential of current IPM compatible technologies. This is critical as growers have already switched from using synthetic chemical insecticides and instead rely on the use of crop hygiene and biological controls, but these approaches require monitoring to determine efficacy as well as to correctly time applications. The novelty of this project is that it is the first to bring together improved knowledge of vine weevil visual and chemical ecology with a prototype 'smart' monitoring tool. With these tools it will be possible to design and test a novel commercial vine weevil monitoring tool. Key to improving the sensitivity and reliability of the monitoring tool will be the development of an effective lure. The ability to automatically and reliably detect the presence of vine weevils within crops means that growers can reduce labour costs whilst at the same time receiving real-time information on the pest status of a crop. Our proposed work plan will be realised through the completion of four research objectives, 1. Develop an effective vine weevil lure; 2. Test monitoring tools with and without the addition of the vine weevil lure under semi-field conditions; 3. Test the best combination of monitoring tool design and vine weevil lure under commercial cropping conditions (soft-fruit and/or ornamentals); 4. Communicate results from the project through agronomist-led site visits.

Grass silage is the main forage fed to ruminants in the UK, and under adverse forage growing conditions or aerobic contamination of clamps or bales at feed-out, fungal spoilage can be widespread. Under these conditions fungi can produce secondary compounds such as mycotoxins, which has been reported to occur in up to 90% of forage fed to cattle in temperate regions such as UK, Ireland and Northern Europe. When present in the diet of cattle, mycotoxins and biologically active breakdown products can negatively affect health, fertility and production, and in extreme cases lead to death. Moreover, there is a risk that mycotoxins can be passed into the human food chain via the milk or meat. The ability of the rumen microbiome to efficiently ferment forages is also dependent on a delicate balance of microbial species that can break down fibre and protein in the diet. An imbalance or shift in microbial population as a result of mycotoxin ingestion may reduce digestive efficiency and subsequently reduce health, milk performance and fertility. There is, however, a lack of knowledge on the conditions that lead to mycotoxin production in grass silage, and their subsequent effect on the rumen microbiome, dairy cow metabolism and health. Additionally, the negative effects of mycotoxins may be mitigated by the addition of binders to the diet, although there is a lack of research on their effectiveness in grass silage based diets This project will investigate the effect of mycotoxins in grass silage on the rumen microbiome, rumen metabolism and performance in dairy cows, and assess the efficacy of feed binders on mitigating their effects.