About
Dr Lorraine E Williams is now an Emeritus fellow and was formerly an Associate Professor in Plant Biology within Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton.
Research
Research groups
Current research
Membrane transporters are vital for plant growth and development. They play key roles in plant nutrition, signalling, homeostasis, osmoregulation and stress responses. The way in which we view membrane transport in higher plants has radically changed and we now recognise the diversity of transport proteins.
Many belong to multi-gene families and individual members often differ in their tissue specific expression pattern, developmental regulation and transport properties. The array of potential transporters for a particular nutrient, together with the presence of isoforms within a transporter family, allows particular cells to respond to developmental and environmental signals in order to carry out efficient transport over a wide concentration range. This is essential in allowing integration of solute transport at the whole plant level.
We are in an exciting era in the field of plant membrane transport with still much to do. My area of interest is in exploring membrane proteins which have key roles in plant nutrition. As plants are the basis of all foodstuffs we ingest, this research has important implications for agriculture, human nutrition and health.
Research projects
Completed projects
Publications
Teaching
Course Director
Formerly MRes Biological Sciences programme director
Module Co-ordinator
BIOL2007 Plant Development and Function
BIOL3003 Plant Cell Biology
BIOL6044 Plant Cell Biology
BIOL6068 MRes Advanced Biological Sciences Research Project
Lecturer
BIOL2002 Cell Biology
BIOL2007 Plant Development and Function
BIOL3003 Plant Cell Biology
BIOL6044 Plant Cell Biology
BIOL3051 Applied Plant Biology
BIOL6046 Applied Plant Biology
Project Supervisor and/or assessor
BIOL3034 In-Depth Research Project
BIOL3032 Literature-based Research Project
BIOL6068 MRes Advanced Biological Sciences Research Project
BIOL6013 In depth research project
BIOL3059 Bioscience Education
Postgraduate Lecturer
Biography
Career History
2025-present: Emeritus fellow, Biological Sciences, University of Southampton
2014-2025: Associate Professor. Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, UK.
2004-2014: Senior Lecturer. School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, UK.
2001-2004: Lecturer. School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, UK.
1991-2001: Royal Society University Research Fellow. School of Biological Sciences, Southampton, UK.
1991-1991: Postdoctoral Research Assistant. Department of Biology, University of Southampton, UK.
1989-1991: SERC Postdoctoral Research Fellow. Department of Biology, University of Southampton, UK.
1988-1989: Postdoctoral Research Associate. Department of Agronomy, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA.
1987-1988: Postdoctoral Research Associate. Department of Genetics and Pathology, Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association, Hawaii, USA.
1984-1987: Graduate Research Assistant. Department of Biology, University of Southampton, UK.
Academic Qualifications
1984-1987: PhD Plant Physiology. University of Southampton, UK.
1980-1984: BSc Applied Biology. First Class Honours. University of Bath, UK.