At this year’s Canadian Society of Plant Biologists (CSPB) meeting, Hyunsuh Lee from the Yoshioka lab was recognized with the CSPB President’s Award for Best Oral Presentation, an award given to students whose talk is judged to demonstrate excellence in both research and communication. Congratulations, Hyunsuh!
Lee’s talk “Identification of cyclic nucleotide-gated channels in chitin-triggered immune responses in Arabidopsis thaliana” details her work investigating the role of Arabidopsis calcium channels in generating calcium signals that coordinate immune responses during fungal infection.
Lee reflected on the recognition, saying, “I felt grateful to receive this award. The session provided a valuable opportunity to share my findings with a focused audience of researchers and trainees working in plant immunity and signal transduction.”
Lee notes that the award grows out of the opportunities she has had throughout her academic journey. “I have benefited from presenting my research and receiving constructive feedback at various conferences. Exposure to diverse scientific perspectives, along with the chance to connect with other researchers, has meaningfully shaped my work. These experiences have also helped me develop stronger communication skills and build confidence in sharing my research with a broad scientific audience.”
CSPB 2025: select conference highlights
Lee attended the meeting alongside graduate students and faculty from all three CSB campuses: the Ensminger lab, Goring lab, Lumba lab, Mott lab, Nambara lab, Pan lab, Provart lab, Satyaki lab, Yoshioka lab, and Zhao lab. They shared their research with a diverse group of plant biologists from across Canada, hosted at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
“I was excited to see CSB so well represented at CSPB,” Lee explains.
Prof Eiji Nambara delivered a plenary talk titled “Abscisic acid, calcium signaling, and plant responses to high humidity”, focusing on the role of calcium signaling in activating key molecular players that lead to ABA catabolism under high humidity conditions.
“Seeing the presentations from CSB students and faculty really highlighted both the diversity and depth of research happening in the department,” Lee added.
Prof Daphne Goring was awarded the CSPB Gold Medal and presented her award lecture, “Pollen acceptance or rejection? Intersecting signaling pathways in the stigma regulate Brassicaceae reproduction”.
Goring highlighted key discoveries made by her research group over the years, revealing molecular mechanisms that govern pollen acceptance or rejection in Brassica and Arabidopsis species. Goring also shared reflections on her 40-year research career, acknowledging the mentors, colleagues, students, friends, and family who have been part of her journey.