Nick Dunken

Autophagy restricts symbiosis-associated cell death and regulates colonization by Serendipita indica in Arabidopsis Autophagy acts as a pro-survival mechanism in plant roots during beneficial fungal colonization by restricting fungal proliferation and immunometabolic cel

My former colleague Patricia Zecua, me and the Zuccaro group published a new story about how autophagy restricts cell death and regulates root colonization by beneficial fungi:

academic.oup.com/plphys/advan...

27.11.2025 08:29 — 👍 25    🔁 16    💬 0    📌 0

Cooperation between a root fungal endophyte and host‐derived coumarin scopoletin mediates Arabidopsis iron nutrition Iron acquisition is a critical challenge for plants, especially in iron-deficient soils. Recent research underscores the importance of root-exuded coumarins in modulating the root microbiome communi.....

Super excited to share that my PhD research paper is finally out!
@newphyt.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/nph....

@parkergroup.bsky.social

21.08.2025 10:55 — 👍 38    🔁 20    💬 2    📌 0

The post shows a picture of Nick after successfully passing his viva on a green background with words congratulating him on acquiring the PhD title.

🎓👏 Congratulations to Dr. @nickdunken.bsky.social Nick Dunken on the successful PhD defense in the lab of @algazuccaro.bsky.social at the University of Cologne and @mpipz.bsky.social! Welcome to the circle of doctors!
#phdone #plantscience #sciencecareer

20.08.2025 08:31 — 👍 15    🔁 3    💬 0    📌 0

Host-adapted enzymatic deconstruction of acetylated xylan enables mutualistic colonization of monocot roots https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.11.663926v1

14.07.2025 14:03 — 👍 1    🔁 2    💬 0    📌 0

Host-adapted enzymatic deconstruction of acetylated xylan enables mutualistic colonization of monocot roots Intracellular accommodation of mutualistic fungi in plant roots depends on selective remodeling of host cell walls while minimizing activation of plant immune responses. In this study, we identify a h...

Our latest article in bioRxiv. A very good and comprehensive paper by Mathias Brands, Vicente Ramirez, Laura Armbruster et al. on the deconstruction of acetylated xylan in symbiosis. If you would like to learn more, please talk to Mathias at #2025ISMPMI, poster P-239.
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

14.07.2025 15:52 — 👍 9    🔁 6    💬 0    📌 0

Purine-Based Infochemicals and Immunometabolites: A Comparative Review of Emerging Signaling Pathways in Plants and Animals Abstract. Purine-based metabolites serve as essential mediators of signaling, immunity, and host-microbe interactions across biological kingdoms. This revi

Our new review in FEMS Microbiology by Nick Dunken and Tim Thomsen is online. Purine-Based Infochemicals and Immunometabolites: A Comparative Review of Emerging Signaling Pathways in Plants and Animals url: academic.oup.com/femsre/artic...

14.07.2025 08:37 — 👍 9    🔁 7    💬 0    📌 0