Wenbo Ma is a Senior Group Leader at the Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL) and an honorary professor at the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom. She earned her PhD at the University of Waterloo, Canada, and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Toronto with a Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada Post-Doctoral Fellowship. She was appointed as an Assistant Professor at the University of California Riverside in 2006, and was a tenured Professor from 2012 to 2020, when her group relocated to TSL.

Wenbo’s research investigates the molecular basis of the dynamic plant-pathogen arms race, advancing fundamental knowledge of microbial pathogenesis and plant immunity. Her groundbreaking research has laid foundations for developing sustainable strategies for disease resistance. Wenbo mentors early-career researchers and champions equity and inclusion in science.

Wenbo is the President-Elect for the International Society of Molecular Plant-Microbe Interaction. She is an elected fellow of the Royal Society (FRS), The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and the 2021 recipient of the Ruth Allen Award from the American Phytopathological Society (APS).