Jiang Wang: Plant Physiology First Author

Jiang Wang, first author of “Hexose transporter SWEET5 confers galactose sensitivity to Arabidopsis pollen germination via a galactokinase”

Current Position: Postdoc, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA

Education:

2012-2017 Ph.D. in Biology, University of Western Ontario, Canada

2007-2011 B.S. in Resources and Environmental Science, Northwest A&F University, China

Non-scientific Interests:  Hiking, Basketball, Swimming

Brief bio: Having a background in environmental science and plant molecular biology, allows me to have an opportunity to realize the indispensable role of plants in the context of fast evolving environment. Advances in technology and science, especially in the realm of molecular biology, have empowered plant scientists to pursue a goal of a sustainable future aided by metabolic engineering in plants. I am excited to be part of this interdisciplinary field as a postdoc from UIUC since 2018. My current research interests are the strategies of re-directing sugars for oil synthesis in sugar accumulating stems of energy crops (such as sorghum, sugarcane, and energy cane), the long-term goal is to replace a significant portion of fossil fuel consumption in a carbon negative manner through metabolically engineered oil producing energy crops. Over the past 10 years of my research, I have learned the molecular mechanisms of nitrate and sugar transporters, carbon metabolic changes during pollen germination, the identification/optimization of tissue specific promoters in energy crops, as well as the proof-of-concept strategy to improve fatty acids in sugar accumulating tissues. In the future, I hope to continue the path of plant metabolic engineering and translate what I have learned into field crops.

 

姓名：王将

当前职位：博士后，伊利诺伊大学香槟分校， 美国

教育经历：

2012-2017 生物学博士，西安大略大学， 加拿大

2007-2011 资源环境科学学士，西北农林科技大学，中国

兴趣爱好：徒步，篮球，游泳

个人简介：

 环境科学和分子生物学的学习经历使我切身体会到植物在环境的快速演化过程中起到了不可或缺的作用。随着分子生物学领域科技的进步，植物科学工作者可以利用代谢工程学等手段改造植物，从而促进环境的可持续发展。2018年至今，我作为博后在UIUC有幸参与了这个交叉学科领域的研究。我目前的研究兴趣包括：如何调控糖在植物体内以及细胞器之间的分配，同时构建有效的代谢途径使糖更多得转化为油脂， 长期目的是将高产能源作物（如高粱，甘蔗）茎秆里累积的糖转化为油脂，从而使具有碳负性质的能源作物将来能够替代一部分化石能源的消耗。 在过去10年的研究经历里，我的研究内容主要包括：氮转运蛋白，糖转运蛋白在植物体内的功能、植物花粉发育与萌发过程中的碳代谢途径、甘蔗茎秆特异启动子的鉴定与改良、以及在糖累积器官内，糖向油脂转化的有效策略。我期望，将来能够利用代谢工程改造的能源植物为能源与环境的可持续发展贡献一份力量。