Recognizing Plant Direct first authors: Devrim Coskun

Devrim Coskun, first author of Si permeability of a deficient Lsi1 aquaporin in tobacco can be enhanced through a conserved-residue substitution

Current Position: FRQNT Postdoctoral Fellow, Bélanger Lab, Département de Phytologie, Faculté des Sciences de l’Agriculture et de l’Alimentation (FSAA), Université Laval

Education: Hon. B. Sc. (University of Toronto), Ph. D. (University of Toronto)

Non-scientific Interests: Great music, great books, great movies, great food, great drinks, and great friends

Brief bio: I completed an honours thesis (2009) and Ph. D. (2016) under the supervision of Prof. Herbert J. Kronzucker (University of Toronto), studying the nutritional physiology of cereals with a special focus on root membrane transporters mediating K⁺ and NH₃/NH₄⁺ fluxes. My research also spanned such topics as Na⁺ transport and salinity stress, the benefits of Si provision, nutrient constraints on C fixation, and root-exudate effects on the N cycle. In 2017, I began an NSERC PDF in the laboratory of Prof. Richard R. Bélanger (Université Laval), focusing on elucidating the transport mechanisms and prophylactic properties of Si in plants. In 2019, I was awarded an FRQNT PDF to continue this work. The overarching goal of my research is to bridge the conceptual and technical gaps between molecular transport mechanisms and the nutritional physiology of the intact organism in order to tackle real-world/field-level problems.