Recognizing Plant Physiology author Thomas D Alcock

Thomas D Alcock, first author of Magnesium and calcium over-accumulate in the leaves of a schengen3 mutant of Brassica rapa

Current Position: Postdoctoral Researcher, Crop Physiology, School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Germany

Education: PhD in plant nutrition at University of Nottingham, United Kingdom

Non-scientific Interests: Playing music, hiking in the mountains, exploring

Brief bio: I completed my PhD in Plant Sciences at the University of Nottingham (UoN), before going on to perform my first postdoctoral projects with the Future Food Beacon, also at UoN. During this time, I largely focussed on characterising the genetic basis of calcium and magnesium accumulation in Brassica crops. Whilst with the Future Food Beacon, I also developed and undertook a project quantifying the environmental sustainability of vegetable oil production, aiming to assess major sources of greenhouse gas emissions throughout the production life cycle.

I’ve recently moved to the Technical University of Munich, where I am once again engaged in crop nutrition based research. I am specifically looking into metalloid transport mechanisms, with a view to identifying solutions for uptake of essential and beneficial elements such as boron and selenium, whilst minimising uptake of toxic elements such as arsenic. By optimising elemental accumulation in crop tissue, we can seek to increase crop productivity, boost dietary intakes of plant-sourced nutrients by humans and animals, and limit accumulation of toxic elements. I have also previously engaged in research and capacity strengthening projects in Brazil and Benin, respectively.