Nicolas Doll, a post-doctoral fellow in plant biology, won the 2020 Bettencourt Young Researchers Prize for his work on cell death regulation in grain seeds.

Cell death and seed growth

Like humans, plants are complex biological systems whose survival depends on eliminating unwanted cells. While this process is widely studied in humans to fight cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, it is much less examined in plants, where other players and cell death mechanisms are involved.

Nicolas Doll is interested in the molecules involved in cell death regulation in grain seeds. A mature seed’s main tissue, albumen, is filled with nutrients and begins a programmed cell death. During his post-doctorate, Dr. Doll will study how this occurs. He will describe the phenomenon and identify how it is regulated during seed development. He aims to identify the genes and molecules involved in the process and test the effects of early or late cell death on seed development. This process is assumed to be crucial for the stability of the nutrients stored in the seed and would facilitate the germination of the future plant, the embryo.

Of major agronomic interest

Dr. Doll's work on corn should help boost knowledge about seeds, a structure of major agronomic value whose nutrients provide 60% of the food consumed in the world. Better understanding the phenotypic variations of grain seeds would make it possible to optimize their size to boost agricultural output and meet the challenges of global warming.

"I combine experiments with modeling to unlock the secrets of plant development and help the planet adapt to climate risks." Nicolas Doll

Nicolas Doll in a few words

Nicolas Doll specializes in plant biology. As a student at the École Normale Supérieure in Lyon, he won first place in the life and earth sciences agrégation exam before starting work on a PhD allowing him to focus entirely on his passion for plants. He is interested in plant development and reproduction, whose complexity is a constant source of wonder.

For his PhD, he worked on flowering plant varieties in the plant reproduction and development laboratory at the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon. He demonstrated the existence of a molecular dialogue between a seed’s different compartments during its development, leading to a better understanding of how a functioning seed engenders a new plant.

Dr. Doll wants to continue his research career while at the same time teaching science, a profession he loves.

Bettencourt Prize for Young Researchers

Created in 1990, the Bettencourt Prize for Young Researchers is one of the first initiatives of the Fondation Bettencourt Schueller. Until 2021, this prize was awarded each year to 14 young doctors of science or doctors of medicine, to enable them to carry out their post-doctoral stay in the best foreign laboratories. 349 young researchers were distinguished. The prize endowment was €25,000.

All the award-winners