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Dr.
C.J.
Tsai
Professor and Eminent Scholar
Research Interests
phenylpropanoid metabolismgrowth-defense tradeoff gene family evolution and functional diservification functional genomics metabolite engineering |
I hold a split appointment between the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources and the Department of Genetics. Research projects in my lab center around the theme of dissecting molecular mechanisms underpinning tree fitness and biomass productivity. I am particularly interested in the regulation of phenylpropanoid metabolism. Two classes of phenylpropanoids, phenolic glycosides and condensed tannins, in particular, play important roles in defense and stress management among Salicaceae (e.g., poplars and willows), and together with lignin, represent a large carbon sink that can account for more than 50% of leaf biomass in these species. Their potential effects on tree growth, fitness, and wood quality, and their documented impacts on ecosystem dynamics are the driving force behind this line of research into the molecular regulation of phenylpropanoid metabolism.
Courses
FANR 8140: Functional Genomics,
(Spring Yearly)
Publications
Tuominen, L.K; Johnson, V.E; and Tsai, C. 2011. Differential phylogenetic expansions in BAHD acyltransferases across five angiosperm taxa and evidence of divergent expression among Populus paralogues. BMC Genomics 12:236.
Payyavula, R.S; Tay, K.H; Tsai, C; and Harding, S.A. 2011. The sucrose transporter family in Populus: The importance of a tonoplast PtaSUT4 to bioamss and carbon partitioning. Plant Journal :DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-313X.2010.04.
Wang, H; Tuominen, L.K; and Tsai, C. 2011. SLIM: A sliding linear model for estimating the proportion of true null hypotheses in datasets with dependence structures. Bioinformatics 27:225-231.
Wegrzyn, J.L; Eckert, A.J; Choi, M; Lee, J.M; Stanton, B.J; Sykes, R; Davis, M.F; Tsai, C; and Neale, D.B. 2010. Association genetics of traits controlling lignin and cellulose biosynthesis in black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa, Salicaceae) secondary xylem. New Phytologist 188:515-532.
Guo, J; Strauss, S.H; Tsai, C; Fang, K; Chen, Y; Jiang, X; and Busov, V. 2010. Gibberellins regulate lateral root formation in Populus through interaction with auxin and other hormones. Plant Cell 22:623-639.
Babst, B.A; Harding, S.A.; and Tsai, C. 2010. Biosynthesis of phenolic glycosides from phenylpropanoid and benzenoid precursors in Populus. Journal of Chemical Ecology 36:286-297.
Yuan, Y; Chung, J; Fu, X; Johnson, V.E; Ranjan, P; Booth, S.L; Harding, S.A.; and Tsai, C. 2009. Alternative splicing and gene duplication differentially shaped the regulation of isochorismate synthase in Populus and Arabidopsis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 106:22020-22025.
Payyavula, R.S; Babst, B.A; Harding, S.A.; and Tsai, C. 2009. Glycosylation-mediated phenylpropanoid partitioning in Populus tremuloides cell cultures. BMC Plant Biology 9:151.
Harding, S.A.; Jarvie, M.M; Lindroth, R.L; and Tsai, C. 2009. A comparative analysis of phenylpropanoid metabolism, N utilization, and carbon partitioning in fast- and slow-growing Populus hybrid clones. Journal of Experimental Botany 60:3443-3452.
Cseke, L.J; Tsai, C; Rogers, A; Nelsen, M.P; White, H.L; Karnosky, D.F; and Podila, G.K. 2009. Transcriptomic comparison in the leaves of two aspen genotypes having similar carbon assimilation rates but different partitioning patterns under elevated [CO2]. New Phytologist 182:891-911.
Qin, H; Feng, T; Harding, S; Tsai, C; and Zhang, S. 2008. An efficient method to identify differentially expressed genes in microarray experiments. Bioinformatics 24:1583-1589.
Luo, K; Harding, S; and Tsai, C. 2008. A modified T-vector for simplified assembly of hairpin RNAi constructs. Biotechnology Letters 30:1271-1274.
Oakley, R; Wang, Y; Ramakrishna, W; Harding, S; and Tsai, C. 2007. Differential expansion and expression of alpha- and beta-tubulin gene families in Populus. Plant Physiology 145:961-973.
Rajinikanth, M; Harding, S.A.; and Tsai, C. 2007. The glycine decarboxylase complex multienzyme family in Populus. Journal of Experimental Botany 58:1761-1770.
Lin, J; Gunter, L; Harding, S.A.; Kopp, R; McCord, R; Tsai, C; Tuskan, G; and Smart, L. 2007. Development of AFLP and RAPD markers linked to a locus associated with twisted growth in corkscrew willow (Salix matsudana ‘Tortuosa’). Tree Physiology 27:1575-1583.
Tiimonen, H; Häggman, H; Tsai, C; Chiang, V; and Aronen, T. 2007. The seasonal activity and the effect of mechanical bending and wounding on the PtCOMT promoter in Betula pendula Roth. Plant Cell Reports 26:1205-1214.
Busov, V and Tsai, C. 2007. Perennial challenges and opportunities. New Phytologist 176:3-6.
Grants
"Mechanisms for growth and stress resistance in GS poplar",
CPBR,
01/01/2009-12/31/2011
$247902
"Organ and tissue-specific sucrose transporters: Important hubs in gene and metabolite networks regulating carbon use in wood-forming tissues of Populus",
DOE,
08/01/2010-07/31/2013
$1340000
"Post-translational regulation and transgenic manipulation of Populus alpha- and beta-tubulins during wood formation",
CPBR,
01/01/2009-12/31/2011
$177000
Miscellaneous Info
Current Graduate Students:Han-Yi Chen (Ph.D.), Forest Biology Xi Gu (Ph.D.), Institute of Bioinformatics Feng Long (Ph.D.), Forest Biology Duo Peng (Ph.D.), Forest Biology Prashant Swamy (Ph.D.), Forest Biology Lindsey Tuominen (Ph.D.), Forest Biology Mark Wilson (M.S.), Institute of Bioinformatics Research Staff: Chris Frost, Assistant Research Scientist Virgil (Ed) Johnson, Scientific Computing Professional Principle Yolanda Lay, Laboratory Technician III Vanessa Michelizzi, Lab Coordinator, Research Professional II Batbayar (Baggi) Nyamdari, Postdoctoral Research Associate Liangjiao Xue, Bioinformatics Postdoctoral Research Associate |
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Office:
Davison Life Sciences
B314
Phone: 706.542.1271
Lab:
Davison Life Sciences
B310
Phone: 706.542.1304
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