During the NMR-Discussion Group meeting of Friday 16 October the annual C.J. Gorter NMR-DG thesis prize has been awarded to Dr. Carel Windt. This award is yearly given to the best Ph.D. thesis in the area of magnetic resonance spectroscopy and/or magnetic resonance imaging of the preceding two calendar years.
As a Ph.D. student under supervision of Dr. Henk van As (Biophysics) Carel Windt has investigated long-distance sap flow within the delicate vascular tissues in intact plants with magnetic resonance imaging, and made important discoveries about aspects that were only assumed until now. He was able to measure – for the first time – both xylem flow, i.e. water transport from the roots, and, phloem, i.e. the slow transport of viscous glucose solution from the leaves to the fruits in tomato plants. He discovered that the xylem-flow conducting area is not constant but varies with time. Furthermore, he was able to determine the xylem–to-phloem flow ratio in tomato trusses, which is more difficult than in the stem, because the two flows are parallel. A proper balance between the two flows in tomato trusses determines the taste of the tomatoes, which can be a useful control parameter for tomato growers.
Purpose and criteria
The purpose of the Award is to provide recognition to young scientists in The Netherlands who have performed thesis work of outstanding scientific quality. Criteria for the award are innovation, methodology, scientific scope/impact and the presentation of the Ph.D. research in the thesis. Finally, his thesis is clearly written and illustrated in a way that is also very understandable to non-experts in Magnetic Resonance Imaging.
Furthermore, he has developed a time-efficient NMR method to measure flow-encoded T2 relaxation in imaging mode. In addition to his NMR expertise Dr. Windt has excellent knowledge in plant science. His enthusiasm for developing plant NMR methods, is also testified by his current research on portable NMR equipment for measurements in the field, which he carries out as a postdoc in Jülich, in cooperation with the Wageningen NMR/MRI group (www.portable-nmr.eu).
Prize for best poster
The prize for the best poster presented during that NMR-DG meeting was awarded to Elena Talnishnikh (Biophysics, Wageningen) for the poster “Low field portable NMR meets leaves” by Elena Talnishnikh, Leon Jong en Henk Van As.