Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
Curriculum vitae
Personal details
Name:
Address:
Gender:
Marital status:
Date and place of birth:
Nationality:
Dr. Ing. Leónie Bentsink
Driegaardsestraat 19, 6851 GN Huissen
Female
Living together, two children
29th of august 1973, Eibergen
Netherlands
Master's
College of Higher Education:
Date:
Main subject:
Hogeschool Larenstein Velp
June 1997
Plant Biotechnology
Doctorate
University:
Date:
Promotor:
Title of thesis:
Wageningen University
25 September 2002
Prof. Dr. Ir. M. Koornneef
Genetic analysis of seed dormancy and
seed composition in Arabidopsis thaliana
using natural variation
Work experience since graduating
 Post-doc in the Department of Genetics at the Wageningen University April 2002 until
July 2005, 1.0 fte fixed term.
Funded by the European project “NATURAL” I continued work of my PhD, identifying
seed dormancy loci in several Recombinant Inbred Line populations. In addition I was
the person responsible for the construction of several linkage maps that were the
result of a collaboration with Keygene Wageningen for the application of the
SNPWave™ technique in Arabidopsis populations.
 Post-doc (VENI-Laureate) in the department of Molecular Plant Physiology at Utrecht
University, July 2005 until April 2009, 0.8 fte fixed term. During this project entitled:
“Unravelling seed dormancy pathways, a genetic and genomic approach” I’ve
developed genetic material (near isogenic lines) that have been used for
transcriptomics analyses in order to identify different pathways that control seed
dormancy in nature. In addition I have been working on the cloning of two of the
identified quantitative trait loci.
 Assistant professor Utrecht University, April 2009 until Sept 2013, 1 fte, PI of several
projects that are mentioned under Grants and fellowships.
 Associate professor Wageningen University (Sept 2013-present), 1fte, PI of currently
running projects mentioned under Grants and fellowships.
Work experience since completing PhD
Position
Number of Fixed
fte
term
1.0
x
Assistant
Professor
Period
(date-date)
01/09/200215/07/2005
16/07/200501/01/2009
01/01/200901/09/2013
Associate
Professor
01/09/2013present
1.0
Postdoc
Postdoc
0.8
x
1.0
x
Permanent
X
Staff
supervised
5 PhD, 1
postdoc, 2
technicians
5PhD, 1
postdoc, 1
Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
technicians
Grants and fellowships
VENI-Grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research: Unravelling seed
dormancy pathways, a genetic and genomic approach (2005-2009).
ERA-NET-PG: The virtual seed (vSEED): Combined mathematical, engineering and postgenomics comparative biology to model the systems biology of seed dormancy, afterripening and germination; post-doc and research assistant (2009-2012).
STW: Seed dormancy and seed longevity, towards the identification of markers and
genes; post-doc and PhD-student (2009-2013).
SSA Fellowship: Three month visit of PhD student and 9 days of myself at the Jacob
Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer
Campus, Israel (Oct 2010- Jan 2011).
STW: Production environment and seed quality; PhD student, research assistant and
post-doc (2011-2015).
NWO: The role of seed stored mRNAs and translation in the control of seed dormancy;
PhD student (2012-2015).
NSFC-NWO Exploring the involvement of sugar signaling in the control of seed dormancy;
Postdoc (2012-2015).
NWO-VIDI grant: How does nature regulate seed life span? (2013-2018).
International cooperations:
Collaborations with Dr. C Alonso-Blanco Departamento de Genética, Molecular de Plantas,
Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (CSIC), Madrid, Spain and Dr. X Pico EBD-CSIC, Sevilla,
Spain on the climatic adaptation using the structured population of the Iberian Peninsula.
Collaboration with Veronica Maurino, Plant Molecular Physiology and Biotechnology
group, Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany on malic enzym.
Collaboration with Dr. C Meyer, Plant Adaptation to the Environment, Institut Jean-Pierre
Bourgin, INRA-AgroParisTech, Versailles, France on TOR overexpression and silencing
lines.
Collaboration with Dr. A. Fait, at the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, BenGurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Israel concerning the metabolite
analyses of developing seeds.
Collaborations with the group of Dr. Ir. W. Soppe at the Max Planck Institute for Plant
Breeding research, Cologne, Germany (Department of Prof. Dr. Ir. M. Koornneef) for
cloning of the seed dormancy QTLs.
Collaborations with Prof. M. Holdsworth, Prof. J. King, Prof. A. Wood, Prof. N. Everitt of
the University of Nottingham, UK; Prof. G. Leubner, Dr. T. Speck of the Albert-LudwigsUniversity Freiburg, Germany and Prof. P. Knox of the University of Leeds, as part of the
ERANET-PG program vSEED (www.vSEED.eu).
Collaborations with Dr. P. Grappin and Dr. L. Rajjou, Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin, INRAVersailles, France as part of the STW project: Seed dormancy and seed longevity,
towards the identification of markers and genes.
Collaboration with Prof. S Teng, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai
Institute for Biological Sciences, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, China on sugar
sensing.
Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
Collaborations as part of the seed dormancy/germination consortium. People involved
are: M. Holdsworth, University of Nottingham, UK – W. Soppe, MPI-Cologne, Germany –
B. Finch-Savage, Warwick HRI, UK – G. Leubner, University Freiburg, Germany – D. Job,
CNRS / INRA / Bayer CropScience, France - P. Grappin, INRA-Versailles, France – H.
Hilhorst, Wageningen University, The Netherlands – Prof. O. Lorenzo Sánchez, University
of Salamanca, Spain.
Other academic activities
Peer reviewing for journals: PNAS, Plant Physiology, Evolution, Plant Cell
Environment, Seed Science Research, Physiological Plantarum, Plos One.
and
Guest editor: Seed Science Research, thematic issue on seed dormancy 2014-2015
Peer reviewing for funding agencies: NWO-Rubicon (2010, 2012), BSF United states –
Israel, NRF France, ANR South-Africa – France, Foundation for Polish Science, German
Research Foundation (DFG).
Peer reviewing of institutes:
IJPB Versailles, France. January 2014 (Aeres)
Memberships:
Member of International Society for Seed Science (ISSS)
Member of American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB)
National cooperations:
Collaborations with Dr. J. Hanson, group of Molecular Plant Physiology, Utrecht University
on the analyses of transcriptomics data and translatomics.
Collaborations with the group of Prof. F. van Eeuwijk at of the Department of
Mathematical and Statistical Methods, Wageningen UR, The Netherlands on QTL analyses
on multiple populations.
Connections with seed companies:
Dr. Groot and Dr. Compaan of BEJO Zaden BV
Dr. Mauer and Dr. Goffman of Enza Zaden Seed operations BV
Dr. Nabben of Nunhems Netherlands BV
Dr. Bink and Dr. Matakiadis of Monsanto Holland
Dr. Coppoolse of Rijk Zwaan Breeding BV
Dr. Van de Wijngaard of Syngenta Seeds BV
Lectures (in chronological order)









Dutch society for plant breeding, Jan 2015, Wageningen, The Netherlands,
11th International Society for Seed Science Conference, September
2014,Changsha, China
Plant science meeting ALW, April 2014 Lunteren, The Netherlands,
Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne, Germany. March
2014
Invited speaker Leónie Bentsink. How does nature control seed germination and
seed longevity? 2nd Dutch Seed Symposium, Wageningen, The Netherlands,
October 2013.
Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institute for Biological
Sciences, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, May 2012, China.
ServiceXS winter symposium, December 2011, Wageningen University, The
Netherlands
EPS (graduate school Experimental Plant Sciences) theme 3 day, February 2011,
Wageningen, The Netherlands
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, January 2011, Israel.
Curriculum vitea















Leónie Bentsink
3rd Workshop on Molecular Aspects of Seed Dormancy and Germination. Jul 2010,
York, UK.
EPS symposium on Ecology and Experimental Plant Sciences, September 2009,
Wageningen, The Netherlands
PhD Summer School on Environmental Signaling, August 2009, Utrecht, The
Netherlands
Meeting European seed consortium, September 2008, Paris, France.
Plant science meeting ALW. April 2008, Lunteren, The Netherlands.
De Ruiter Seeds. December 2007, Bergschenhoek, The Netherlands.
2nd Workshop on Molecular Aspects of Seed Dormancy and Germination. July
2007, Salamanca, Spain.
Meeting European seed consortium, February 2006. Nottingham, UK.
Plant science meeting ALW. April 2005, Lunteren, The Netherlands.
1st Workshop on Molecular Aspects of Germination and Dormancy. May, 2004,
Wageningen, The Netherlands.
University of Bristol, Department of Agricultural Sciences IACR-Long Ashton, UK,
Group of Dr. M. Holdsworth. March 2003, (currently at Nottingham University,
UK).
Nottingham University, Plant Science Division. February 2003, Nottingham, UK.
Hogeschool Larenstein Velp. March 1999, March 2000, March 2001 and March
2002, Velp, The Netherlands.
Experimental Plant Sciences (EPS) Theme 3 day, September 2000, Utrecht, The
Netherlands.
The Netherlands Arabidopsis consortium (ARANED). March 1999, Leiden, The
Netherlands.
Publication
2014
Interaction between parental environment and genotype affects plant and seed performance in Arabidopsis
He, H. ; Vidigal, D. ; Snoek, L.B. ; Schnabel, S.K. ; Nijveen, H. ; Hilhorst, H. ; Bentsink, L. (2014)
Journal of Experimental Botany 65 (22). - p. 6603 - 6615.
REDUCED DORMANCY5 Encodes a Protein Phosphatase 2C That Is Required for Seed Dormancy in
Arabidopsis Xiang, Y. ; Nakabayashi, K. ; Ding, J. ; He, F. ; Bentsink, L. ; Soppe, W.J.J. (2014) The
Plant Cell 26 (11). - p. 4362 - 4375.
2013
Transcriptional dynamics of two seed compartments with opposing roles in Arabidopsis seed germination
Dekkers, S.J.W. ; Pearce, S. ; Bolderen-Veldkamp, R.P. ; Marshall, A. ; Widera, P. ; Gilbert, J. ; Drost,
H.G. ; Bassel, G. ; Muller, K. ; King, J.R. ; Wood, A. ; Grosse, I. ; Bentsink, L. (2013) Plant Physiology
163 (1). - p. 205 - 215.
2012
Identification of Reference Genes For RT-qPCR Expression Analysis In Arabidopsis And Tomato Seeds
Dekkers, S.J.W. ; Willems, L.A.J. ; Bassel, G. ; van Bolderen-Veldkamp, R.P. ; Ligterink, W. ; Hilhorst,
H.W.M. ; Bentsink, L.(2012) Plant and Cell Physiology 53 (1). - p. 28 - 37.
Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
Distinct cell wall architectures in seed endosperms in representatives of the brassicaceae and solanaceae
Lee, K.J.D. ; Dekkers, S.J.W. ; Steinbercher, T. ; Walsh, C.T. ; Bacic, T. ; Bentsink, L. ; Leubner-Metzger,
G. ; Knox, J.P.(2012) Plant Physiology 160 (3). - p. 1551 - 1566.
Natural variation for seed longevity and seed dormancy are negatively correlated in Arabidopsis Nguyen,
T.P. ; Keizer, L.C.P. ; Eeuwijk, F. van; Smeekens, S.C.M. ; Bentsink, L. (2012) Plant Physiology 160 (4).
- p. 2083 - 2092.
2010
Natural variation for seed dormancy in Arabidopsis is regulated by additive genetic and molecular
pathways Bentsink, L. ; Hanson, J. ; Hanhart, C.J. ; Blankestijn-de Vries, M.H.C. ; Coltrane, C. ; Keizer,
P. ; El-Lithy, M.E.M. ; Alonso-Blanco, C. ; Andres, M.T. de; Reymond, M. ; Eeuwijk, F.A. van;
Smeekens, S. ; Koornneef, M. (2010) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United
States of America 107 (9). - p. 4264 - 4269.
2009
What has natural variation taught us about plant development, physiology, and adaptation? Alonso-Blanco,
C. ; Aarts, M.G.M. ; Bentsink, L. ; Keurentjes, J.J.B. ; Reymond, M. ; Vreugdenhil, D. ; Koornneef,
M. (2009) The Plant Cell 21 (7). - p. 1877 - 1896.
2008
Seed dormancy and germination Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (2008) The Arabidopsis book 6 . - p. 18
2007
Development of a near-isogenic line population of Arabidopsis thaliana and comparison of mapping power
with a recombinant inbred line population Keurentjes, J.J.B. ; Bentsink, L. ; Alonso-Blanco, C. ;
Blankestijn-de Vries, M.H.C. ; Effgen, S. ; Vreugdenhil, D. ; Koornneef, M. (2007) Genetics 175 . - p. 891
- 905.
2006
Cloning of DOG1, a quantitative trait locus controlling seed dormancy in Arabidopsis Bentsink, L. ;
Jowett, J. ; Hanhart, C.J. ; Koornneef, M. (2006) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the
United States of America 103 (45). - p. 17042 - 17047.
New Arabidopsis recombinant inbred line populations genotyped using SNPWave and their use for
mapping flowering-time quantitative trait loci. El-Lithy, M.E.M. ; Bentsink, L. ; Hanhart, C.J. ; Ruys, G.J.
; Rovito, D. ; Broekhof, J.L.M. ; Poel, H.J. van der; Eijk, M.J. ; Vreugdenhil, D. ; Koornneef, M. (2006)
Genetics 172 (3). - p. 1867 - 1876.
Genetic basis for natural variation in seed vitamin E levels in Arabidopsis thaliana Gilliland, L.U. ;
Magallanes-Lundback, M. ; Hemming, C. ; Suppllee, A. ; Koornneef, M. ; Bentsink, L. ; DellaPenna,
Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
D.(2006) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 103 . - p.
18834 - 18841.
Vacuolar invertase regulates elongation of Arabidopsis thaliana roots as revealed by QTL and mutant
analysis. Sergeeva, L.I. ; Keurentjes, J.J.B. ; Bentsink, L. ; Vonk, J. ; Plas, L.H.W. van der; Koornneef, M.
; Vreugdenhil, D. (2006) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of
America 103 (8). - p. 2994 - 2999.
2005
Sucrose-specific induction of anthocyanin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis requires the MYB75/PAP1 gene.
Teng, S. ; Keurentjes, J.J.B. ; Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. ; Smeekens, S. (2005) Plant Physiology 139
(4). - p. 1840 - 1852.
2003
Analysis of natural allelic variation at seed dormancy loci of Arabidopsis thaliana. Alonso-Blanco, C. ;
Bentsink, L. ; Hanhart, C.J. ; Vries, M.H.C. de; Koornneef, M. (2003) Genetics 164 (2). - p. 711 - 729.
The genetics of phytate and phosphate accumulation in seeds and leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana, using
natural variation. Bentsink, L. ; Yuan, K. ; Koornneef, M. ; Vreugdenhil, D. (2003) Theoretical and
Applied Genetics 106 (7). - p. 1234 - 1243.
2002
Amplification of RNA by NASBA allows direct detection of viable cells of Ralstonia solanacearum in
potato Bentsink, L. ; Leone, G.O.M. ; Beckhoven, J.R.C.M. van; Schijndel, H.B. van; Gemen, B. van;
Wolf, J.M. van der (2002) Journal of Applied Microbiology 93 . - p. 647 - 655.
Seed dormancy and germination Koornneef, M. ; Bentsink, L. ; Hilhorst, H. (2002) Current Opinion in
Plant Biology 5 . - p. 33 - 36.
2000
Genetic analysis of seed-soluble oligosaccharides in relation to seed storability of Arabidopsis Bentsink,
L. ; Alonso-Blanco, C. ; Vreugdenhil, D. ; Tesnier, K. ; Groot, S.P.C. ; Koornneef, M. (2000) Plant
Physiology 124 . - p. 1595 - 1604.
1999
The early flowering mutant efs is involved in the autonomous promotion pathway of Arabidopsis thaliana
Soppe, W.J.J. ; Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (1999) Development 126 . - p. 4763 - 4777.
Curriculum vitea
Leónie Bentsink
Refereed book chapters
2011
Identification and characterization of quantitative trait loci that control seed dormancy in Arabidopsis
Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (2011) In: Seed dormancy: Methods and Protocols in Molecular Biology /
Kermode, A.R., Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2011, (Methods in Molecular Biology 773) - p.
165 - 184.
2007
Genetics aspects of seed dormancy Bentsink, L. ; Soppe, W.J. ; Koornneef, M. (2007) In: Seed
Development, Dormancy and Germination / Bradford, K.J., Nonogaki, H., Oxford, Ames, Carlton :
Blackwell Publishing Ltd, - p. 113 - 132.
2006
Dormancy and germination Hilhorst, H.W.M. ; Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (2006) In: Handbook of Seed
Science and Technology / Basra, E., Binghamton, New York : Haworth's Food Products Press, - p. 271 301.
Non-refereed book chapters
2006
Conserved mechanisms of dormancy and germination targets for manipulations of agricultural problems
Holdsworth, M. ; Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (2006) In: Model Plants and Crop Improvement London New York : CRC Taylor & Francis group, - p. 11 - 32.
2002
Seed dormancy and germination Bentsink, L. ; Koornneef, M. (2002) The Arabidopsis book . - p. 1 - 18.
2000
Molecular genetic analysis of Arabidopsis seed quality Groot, S.P.C. ; Geest, A.H.M. van der; Tesnier,
K.J.Y. ; Alonso-Blanco, C. ; Bentsink, L. ; Donkers, H. ; Koornneef, M. ; Vreugdenhil, D. ; Bino,
R.J. (2000) In: Seed biology : advances and applications : proceedings of the sixth international workshop
on seeds, Merida, Mexico, 1999 / M.Black, K.J.Bradford and J.Vasques-Ramos, Wallingford : CABI
Publishing, - p. 123 - 131.
The genetics of seed dormancy in Arabidopsis thaliana Koornneef, M. ; Alonso-Blanco, C. ; Bentsink, L. ;
Blankestijn-de Vries, H. ; Debeaujon, I. ; Hanhart, C.J. ; Léon-Kloosterziel, K.M. ; Peeters, A.J.M. ; Raz,
V. (2000) In: Dormancy in Plants / J-D.Viémont and J.Crabbé. - Wageningen : CAB International, 2000