Plants, like animals, make use of both long-distance and local cell-cell signals to integrate their developmental patterning. Unlike animal cells, however, the plant cells are encapsulated by the rigid cell walls, as such developmental patterning in plants manifests in the absence of cell migration. We aim to unravel how plant cells interpret complex positional cues, interact with each other, and make cell-fate decisions to generate beautiful, orderly patterns.
Plants form a critical base of our ecosystem. As such, the importance of plants for our life and sustenance of our civilization could never be understated. We strive to unravel the dynamic nature of plant pattern formation, and hope that our research will make innovative new directions in basic plant biology as well as a means for potential translation to agricultural sciences.

As a member laboratory in the WPI Institute of Transformative Biomolecules (ITbM), we are actively collaborating with synthetic chemists and theoretical structural biologists to design new chemical compounds for probing, visualizing, and manipulating pattern formation. We also provide the international training opportunity for those students interested in research experience abroad.

Probing and Manipulating Peptide Signaling in Plant Development

We have deciphered the conserved logic of peptide signal transduction pathways regulating multiple developmental processes in plants: EPIDERMAL PATTERNING FACTOR (EPF)-family peptides perceived by the same receptor, ERECTA, enforce proper stomatal development, promote stem growth, specify leaf shape and vascular patterning. To understand signal specificity, discrimination and buffering, we are categorizing the bioactivity of EPF/EPF-LIKE genes in vivo by taking advantage of their well-described roles in stomatal patterning and stem growth. We plan to collaborate with ITbM’s peptide synthesis group.

Searching for novel compounds influencing stem cell divisions and differentiation in plants

Proper stomatal patterning and density influence plant productivity and survival. As such, identifying small chemicals that influence stem cell activities within stomatal cell lineages could be potentially useful for both basic cell and developmental biology and applied crop science. With the ITbM’s new Molecular Structure Center, we plan to initiate chemical screening.

Reverse-engineering plant receptors for manipulating growth and development

Plants use small chemicals to regulate development and environmental response. As collaboration with the ITbM’s chemists, structural biologists, and physiologists, we plan to reverse-engineer hormone receptors for plethora of synthetic analogs with interesting properties, produced at the ITbM.

Exploring novel mechanisms contributing to cell-cell communication

We expect that number of molecules and mechanisms regulating cell-cell communication in plant development are yet to be discovered. Therefore we always welcome any creative idea, hypothesis, or trial to explore novel mechanisms for cell-cell communication.