James A. Birchler, Senior Editor
Areas of expertise
Chromosome biology, epigenetics, dosage compensation, polyploidy, heterosis, gene silencing, synthetic chromosomes, genomic balance.
James Birchler is Curators’ Professor at the University of Missouri, Columbia. He completed his BS degree at Eastern Illinois University and his PhD at Indiana University. Research interests of the Birchler laboratory include structure and behavior of chromosomes, centromere epigenetics, heterosis, polyploidy, and aneuploidy using maize as the model organism. Studies in Drosophila focus on gene silencing and dosage compensation. The Birchler lab constructed artificial/synthetic chromosome platforms in maize and is developing this technology further. Their general interests include the consequences of dosage-sensitive gene regulatory mechanisms in multicellular eukaryotes for the phenotype and evolutionary processes.
Editorial experience
Plant Cell, Co-editor (2003-2014), Senior Editor (2015-); Genetics, Genomics and Evolution, Assigning Editor (2008-2014); Genetics and Genomics, Senior Editor (2015-); Genetics, Associate Editor (1994-); Maize Genetics Cooperation Newsletter, Co-Editor (2000-); BioMed Central Plant Biology, Editorial Board (2005-); Genetics and Crop Biotechnology, Section Editor (2011-2012), Editorial Advisor (2012-); Tropical Plant Biology, Editorial Board (2007-); Annual Review of Plant Biology, Editorial Board Guest Member (2007, 2008, 2013); Annual Review of Genetics, Editorial Board (2010-2014).
Honors and awards include
Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2002), Named one of five “Teaching Legends”, Mizzou Magazine (2003), Member, National Academy of Sciences (2011), Einstein Professor, Chinese Academy of Sciences (2014), Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (2014).
