Hannah Blount

Biography

I am a PGR based in the School of Geography at the University of Leeds. My research is investigating the impacts of agricultural practices on antifungal resistance in soils and is supervised by Prof Laura Carter and Prof Paul Kay, and Dr Ed Haynes as my CASE partner supervisor from Fera.

I previously completed my Undergraduate at the University of Leeds in Biology, and proceeded to complete my Masters in Molecular Biology at the University of Liverpool. Most recently I worked at Niab as an Agricultural Trials Technician, carrying out crop variety and fungicide programme trials. I have also done work for the Rural Payments Agency involving field mapping and carrying physical land cover inspections

Qualifications

  • 2023-2024: Masters in Advanced Biological Sciences from University of Liverpool
  • 2018-2021: BSc in Biology from University of Leeds

Links

Research Interests

  • Soil microbiomes
  • Soil contaminants
  • Fungal ecology and evolution
  • Resistance mechanisms
  • Regenerative agriculture

PhD: Impacts of Agricultural Practices on Antifungal Resistance in Soil Ecosystems

My research explores how different agricultural practices influence the development and persistence of antifungal resistance in soils. I am particularly interested in how pesticide residues affect fungal and bacterial communities, and how such changes to the soil microbiome may alter antifungal resistance dynamics. Exploring how the soil microbiome and pesticides interact is vital for building a better understanding of how to develop more sustainable farming practices, ensuring that pesticide use does not compromise long-term soil health and reduced fungicide efficacy.