Peng Huang: Plant Physiology First Author

Peng Huang, first author of “Cytokinins Regulate Rice Lamina Joint Development and Leaf Angle” 

Current Position: Assistant Professor, College of Life Science and Chemistry, Zhejiang Normal University

Education: Ph.D. in Crop Genetics and Breeding from the Nanjing Agricultural University (China), BSc from the Shandong Agricultural University (China)

Non-scientific Interests: reading books and watching movies

Brief bio: I have always been interested in phytohormone regulating plant growth and development. During my Ph.D., my main focus is on the molecular regulatory mechanism of brassinosteroids in regulating plant architecture and grain development in rice, under the supervision of Prof. Ji Huang and Prof. Hongsheng Zhang at the Nanjing Agricultural University. Then, I joined the group of Prof. Kewei Zhang at Zhejiang Normal University and focused on better understanding the cytokinins (CKs) regulating plant growth and development in rice.

In this work, the OsCKX3 enzyme irreversibly degrades CKs and maintains CK homeostasis in lamina joints. In the osckx3 mutant, accumulated CKs may enhance CYC U4;1 gene expression, promoting asymmetric proliferation of parenchyma cells and vascular bundle in lamina joints, resulting in reduced leaf angles. Our study highlights that the cytokinin pathway can be engineered to reduce leaf angle in rice and possibly in other cereals.

姓名：黄鹏

目前职位：讲师，浙江师范大学化学与生命科学学院

教育背景：

2008-2012，山东农业大学/学士

2012-2018，南京农业大学/（硕博连读）博士

兴趣爱好：读书，看电影

个人简介：我本人一直对植物激素调节植物生长发育方向感兴趣。我在南京农业大学黄骥教授和张红生教授的指导下攻读博士学位期间，主要研究油菜素内酯调节水稻株型和籽粒发育的分子调控机制。博士毕业后，我加入了浙江师范大学张可伟教授的团队，专注于进一步揭示细胞分裂素（cytokinins ，CKs）调节水稻生长发育的调控机理。

在本研究中，OsCKX3能够不可逆地降解CKs，并维持叶枕中的CK稳态。在osckx3突变体中，累积的CKs可能增强CYC U4;1基因表达，促进叶枕中薄壁细胞和维管束的不对称增殖，导致叶夹角变小，表明细胞分裂素代谢途径在作物重要农艺性状的改良方面具有巨大潜力。