Hello, my name is Nick Desnoyer and I am currently a postdoctoral researcher in the group of Sophien Kamoun at The Sainsbury Laboratory. I have a passion for biology and love spending my time experimenting with plants, peering through the microscope, and reading scientific literature. In addition to research, I seek to communicate the beauty of plant science to the public through educational art projects combining genetic engineering and live imaging. How did I get here? Below is a synopsis of my life story.
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I was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1995. As a kid, I liked to draw, float down the river, and run around my parents property in the countryside. In high-school my three most impactful courses were biology, graphic design, and video journaling. I remember getting my first biology textbook and being fascinated by the detailed diagrams in that book. These drawings held weight; each one was backed by science and held the instructions for life. Having spent a lot of time with digital design, I considered to one day become a scientific illustrator.
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After graduating high-school I moved to Tucson, Arizona where I did my bachelors in biology at the University of Arizona. In my third year, I became a biology tutor with Dr. Susan Jorstad, where my interest in teaching biology really crystalized. In my final year, I joined the lab of Dr. Ravi Palanivelu, who was an incredible mentor to me and encouraged me to continue studying plant molecular biology. Although I was accepted into various PhD programs, I decided to instead stay in Ravis lab for my masters and test out whether a PhD is for me. While writing my thesis, I read impressive papers on live imaging of plant reproduction from the groups of Ueli Grossniklaus and Tetsuya Higashiyama. After debating doing a PhD in Japan or Switzerland, I decided to join Uelis group in August 2019.
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Accepted into the Plant Biology PhD program at the University of Zürich, I flew across the pond ready for a new adventure! Working at the IPMB situated in the beautiful botanical gardens, I developed a passion for microscopy and plant development. Alongside my research, I began sharing this passion online, through a combination of live imaging and animation. In December 2023, I generated a pink Arabidopsis rose for a course which completely captivated my imagination. I could create art not only in the form of drawings or live imaging, but with real biological material in a relatively short period of time! A tribute to natures design and the dedicated work of thousands of scientists.


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Apart from science, I try to live life to its fullest! I feel a strong call to adventure and seek to become the strongest version of myself. That means always growing my mental and physical health while trying my best to empower others around me. The virtues I value most are positivity, resilience, and open-mindedness.

In terms of personal growth, I love pushing my limits in running, calisthenics, and tennis. My happy place is on a canoe fishing down a river with nothing but the sounds of nature. When not outdoors, I love nothing more than some creative time getting lost in artistic endeavors blending biology, graphic design, and photography.
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