Pieter van West

Pieter is a mycologist based at the University of Aberdeen. He obtained his PhD in Molecular Plant Pathology at the Wageningen University in the Netherlands and then moved to Aberdeen in 1998. In 2000, he was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship to investigate 'Fundamental molecular processes in oomycete pathogens'. In 2012, he was given a Chair in Mycology at the University of Aberdeen.

His research laboratory investigates Saprolegnia and other oomycete pathogens of plants, algae and animals, in particular fish. Most of the research undertaken is to investigate the ecology and the infection process of Saprolegnia and how we can reduce the impact of this pathogen both in aquaculture and in our natural environment. He is particularly interested in developing novel methods to control diseases in aquaculture in order to make the industry more sustainable.