SEMINAR:Mineral nutritional physiology and the path to crop resilience..

Guest: Devrim Coşkun, Sabancı University

Title: Mineral nutritional physiology and the path to crop resilience and agricultural sustainability

Date/Time: 12 March 2025, 13:40

Location: FENS G035

Abstract: We are living through turbulent times. Chief among the myriad global challenges we face is sustainably feeding an estimated 9.5 billion people by mid-century while simultaneously combating – and mitigating – a host of environmental issues which modern agriculture, itself, has contributed to (e.g., the rises in pollution, soil erosion, pests, disease, drought, and salinity). Using a range of experimental techniques, both classical (e.g., radioisotopic flux analysis and electrophysiology) and modern (e.g., heterologous expression systems and fiber-optic photometry), my research aims to address this challenge by investigating the underlying molecular, cellular, and physiological transport mechanisms of mineral nutrient and toxicant acquisition in the roots of the world’s foremost crops. I will discuss my work on plant silicon (Si) transport and Si-derived resilience against a wide range of environmental stressors, both biotic and abiotic, and how we can effectively exploit this elusive but beneficial nutrient to mitigate crop stress and reduce our reliance on pesticides and fungicides. I will also discuss my work on root ammonium (NH3/NH4+)transport, particularly in the contexts of ammonium toxicity and reducing the prodigious waste and environmental damage caused by N fertilization. Lastly, I will discuss my project to elucidate the nature of primary sodium (Na+) uptake under conditions of salinity stress, and what low-affinity potassium (K+)transport can reveal about this process. By taking a whole-plant physiological approach to questions of crop mineral nutrition and toxicity, I aim to bridge the gap between the cutting-edge of molecular-genetics and addressing real-world problems in agricultural sustainability, food security, and environmental protection. 

Bio: Born and raised in Toronto, Dr. Coşkun received his Hon. B. Sc. (2009) and Ph.D. (2016) from the University of Toronto, in the laboratory of Prof. Herbert J. Kronzucker’s. His NSERC-funded thesis project explored the membrane transport mechanisms of potassium (K + ), ammonium (NH 3 /NH 4 + ), and sodium (Na + ) in the roots of barley, rice, and arabidopsis, in the contexts of fundamental plant mineral nutrition and many important abiotic stresses (e.g., soil K + deficiency, ammonium toxicity, and salinity stress). His postdoc (2017 – 2022; funded by FRQNT and NSERC Fellowships) was conducted in the laboratory of Prof. Richard R. Bélanger’s (Université Laval), where he studied the molecular-genetic underpinnings of silicon (Si) transport in plants and its prophylactic properties against environmental stress. He stayed on as a Research Assistant (2022 – 2024) in the Bélanger lab before recently joining an Assistant Professorship at Sabanci University. He is the author of 27 peer-reviewed articles and three book chapters (most recently, two for the latest (4 th ) edition of ‘Marschner’s Mineral Nutrition of Plants’ (2023, Elsevier)). He is also the Subject Editor for the Journal of Plant Physiology (Elsevier; 2017 – present) and Section Editor for Plant and Soil (Springer Nature; 2021 – present).