Juan has won a prestigious 2-year Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoc funded by the EU. He is working with importance of root traits in rice for greenhouse gass emissions.
Juan and I first met at the University of Western Australia where he conducted his PhD with Prof Colmer as supervisor. After graduation, Juan went to Japan to work with Prof Nakazono, but in 2022 he won a prestigious 2-year Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoc fellowship and is now working with me here in Copenhagen.
Juan's research focuses on root traits of rice and how these affect the emission of greenhouse gasses. Rice paddies are known to be major sources of methane, but Juan will also look into the importance of CO2 and N2O. One trait in particular has Juan's interest viz. the root barrier to radial oxygen loss. The barrier consists of suberized and lignified cell walls in the root exodermis, and Juan's research in Japan indicates that other biopolymers might be involved as well. His work links directly into the work of Lucas, who discovered that the barrier to radial oxygen loss also restricts water movements. This discovery has recently been further explored by Song in a paper in Plant and Soil.
Progress in Juan's research is regularly reported on my blog or on our Department's official website where Juan has his own profile.
