Journal of Plant Biochemistry & Physiology
Open Access

Yong Q Gu

Biography

I have over 23 years of accumulated research experience and have authored or co-authored on over 70 peer-reviewed journal publications, 1 US patent, numerous edited proceedings, book chapters, and meeting abstracts. Throughout my research career, I often demonstrate creativity and originality in science and leadership through successful applications of innovative techniques and systems for solving problems in plant biology and genomics research. Before I joined my current position as a senior scientist at USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Western Regional Research Center, I worked as a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Martins laboratory at Cornell University to characterize the disease resistance signaling pathway involved in tomato plants expressing Pto resistance gene and bacteria Pseudomonas syringae expressing avrPto. I demonstrated that genetic manipulation of a downstream component of a resistance gene-mediated pathway is an effective approach to activate defense responses of plants for inhibiting pathogen growth and minimizing disease symptoms. In my Ph.D dissertation research project at Dept. of Botany and Plant Sciences, UC Riverside, I conducted molecular, biochemical and immunological characterization of a tomato leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) in the plant-defense response. Currently, the tomato LAP still represents the best characterized exoprotease in plants. In the current position, my laboratory developed a high efficient system for sequencing, assembly, and annotation of wheat DNAs. This is demonstrated by the fact that the High Molecular Weight (HMW)-glutenin locus is the best studied genetic region in wheat through sequence analysis. The sequencing technology developed is currently adopted in a large collaborative project to sequence the wheat chromosome 3D through a BAC-by-BAC strategy. We reported the first comparative analysis of wheat prolamin regions with other five grass species, providing the first detailed view of sequence evolution among closely related genomes. The finding in this research also led to the development a novel genome-specific, ubiquitous repeat junction marker system which overcomes conventional mapping challenges with gene-based molecular markers in polyploid wheat and make it more efficient to map and clone important genes/traits in low gene density regions. The research to develop SNP markers for the hexaploid wheat is challenging and involves the development of several innovative procedures to generate genome-specific primers based on nucleotide polymorphisms. The SNP resources we developed are widely used by the wheat community for various research. I played instrumental role in the research to develop genomics resources for Brachypodium, an emerging model species for the temperate grasses. This includes the construction of three large insert BAC libraries, sequencing of BAC ends, and development of genome-wide physical maps. These research and genomics resources have contributed to the further adoption of this species as a model system for diverse aspects of plant research. My scientific stature is substantiated by many invited talks. I am recognized nationally and internationally as an authority to wheat biology, genetics and genomics research. I has been frequently approached by others in the use of comparative genomics, genome sequencing and annotation, and molecular marker and genotyping technologies. Since joining ARS, I have supervised 9 postdoctoral researchers, 5 visiting graduate students, 3 visiting scientists, 6 laboratory technicians, and 15 college and high school students.

Research Interest

In the current position, my laboratory developed a high efficient system for sequencing, assembly, and annotation of wheat DNAs. This is demonstrated by the fact that the High Molecular Weight (HMW)-glutenin locus is the best studied genetic region in wheat through sequence analysis. The sequencing technology developed is currently adopted in a large collaborative project to sequence the wheat chromosome 3D through a BAC-by-BAC strategy. We reported the first comparative analysis of wheat prolamin regions with other five grass species, providing the first detailed view of sequence evolution among closely related genomes. The finding in this research also led to the development a novel genome-specific, ubiquitous repeat junction marker system which overcomes conventional mapping challenges with gene-based molecular markers in polyploid wheat and make it more efficient to map and clone important genes/traits in low gene density regions. The research to develop SNP markers for the hexaploid wheat is challenging and involves the development of several innovative procedures to generate genome-specific primers based on nucleotide polymorphisms. The SNP resources we developed are widely used by the wheat community for various research. I played instrumental role in the research to develop genomics resources for Brachypodium, an emerging model species for the temperate grasses. This includes the construction of three large insert BAC libraries, sequencing of BAC ends, and development of genome-wide physical maps. These research and genomics resources have contributed to the further adoption of this species as a model system for diverse aspects of plant research.