Xing Wang Deng, Ph.D.

Co-Director and Investigator, NIBS, Beijing

Education

1982 B.S., Plant Biochemistry and Physiology, Biology, Department ofBiology, Beijing University, China

1985 M.S., Biophysics and Biochemistry of Photosynthesis, Departmentof Biology, Beijing University, China

1989 Ph.D., Molecular and Physiological Plant Biology, University ofCalifornia at Berkeley

Professional Experience

Research Description

My research at NIBS is focused on two areas. One is the molecular and biochemical basis for light control of Arabidopsis development. Our studies have revealed a dozen pleiotropic COP/DET/FUS loci responsible for mediating light control of seedling development. These include COP1, which functions as the master repressor of photomorphogenic development and acts within the nucleus as an E3 ligase by directly targeting photomorphogenesis-promoting transcription factors for degradation by the 26S proteasome in darkness. Light inactivates COP1 and causes a reduction in its nuclear abundance. Another gene, COP10, encodes a probable E2 component. Most remaining genes encode subunits of a highly conserved multi-subunit protein complex, the COP9 signalosome, a novel regulator of the E3 ligases that promotes de-conjugation of NEDD8/RUB1 from certain E3 ligases. This group of regulatory proteins enables the cell to respond to external stimuli or stresses. Currently, we are applying both molecular genetic and genomic approaches to further analyze the components of this novel cellular machinery, which is conserved among all multicellular organisms. Our second area of research is the genome-wide organization of DNA elements and chromatin in rice. We have constructed a series of technology platforms, including a whole genome expression microarray, a high density oligomer tiling microarray, and a ChIP-chip assay, to define genome wide gene expression profiles as well as DNA and histone modification patterns. Our goal here is to search for the genomic basis for rice domestication and heterosis.

Publications

1.Chen H., Shen Y., Tang X., Yu L., Wang J., Guo L., Zhang Y., Zhang H., Feng S., Strickland E., Zheng N. and Deng X.W.. Arabidopsis Cullin 4 Forms an E3 Ubiquitin Ligase with RBX1 and the CDD Complex in Mediating Light Control of Development. The Plant Cell. 2006 Aug.; 18(8).

2.Guo L., Yin B., Zhou J., Li X., Deng X.W.. Development of rabbit monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies for detection of site-specific histone modifications and their application in analyzing overall modification levels.Cell Research.2006; 16: 519-527.

3.Han Z., Guo L., Wang H., Shen Y., Deng X.W., Chai J.. Structural Basis for the Specific Recognition of Methylated Histone H3 Lysine 4 by the WD-40 Protein WDR5. Mol Cell. 2006 Apr.;22(1):137-44.

4.Li J., Zhu S., Song X., Shen Y., Chen H., Yu J., Yi K., Liu Y., Karplus V.J., Wu P., Deng X.W.. A Rice Glutamate Receptor-Like Gene Is Critical for the Division and Survival of Individual Cells in the Root Apical Meristem. Plant Cell. 2006 Feb.; 18(2):340-9. Epub 2005 Dec 23.

5.Li L., Wang X., Stolc V., Li X., Zhang D., Su N., Tongprasit W., Li S., Cheng Z., Wang J., Deng X.W.. Genome-wide transcription analyses in rice using tiling microarrays. Nature Genetics. 2006 Jan.; 38: 124 – 129. Epub Dec 20.

6.Stolc V., Li L., Wang X., Li X., Su N., Tongprasit W., Han B., Xue Y., Li J., Snyder M., Gerstein M., Wang J. and Deng X.W.. A pilot study of transcription unit analysis in rice using oligonucleotide tiling-path microarray. Plant Mol Bio. 2005; 59(1):137-149.

7.Ma L., Chen C., Liu X.，Jiao Y., Su N., Li L., Wang X., Cao M., Sun N., Zhang X., Bao J., Li J., Pedersen S., Bolund L., Zhao H., Yuan L., Wong G.K.S., Wang J., Deng X.W., Wang J.. A microarray analysis of the rice transcriptome and its comparison to Arabidopsis. Genome Research. 2005; 15(9):1274-1283.

8.Li L., Wang X., Xia M., Stolc V., Su N., Peng Z., Li S., Wang J., Wang X.,Deng X.W.. Tiling microarray analysis of rice chromosome 10 to identify the transcriptome and relate its expression to chromosomal architecture. Genome Biol. 2005; 6(6):R52.

9.Jiao Y., Jia P., Wang X., Su N., Yu S., Zhang D., Ma L., Feng Q., Jin Z., Li L., Xue Y., Cheng Z., Zhao H., Han B., Deng X.W.. A Tiling Microarray Expression Analysis of Rice Chromosome 4 Suggests a Chromosome-Level Regulation of Transcription. Plant Cell. 2005; 17(6):1641-57.

10.Li L., Wang X., Li X., Su N., Stolc V., Han B., Li J., Xue Y., Wang J., Deng X.W.. Toward genome-wide transcriptional analysis in rice using MAS oligonucleotide tiling-path microarrays. Rice Is Life: Scientific Perspectives For The 21st Century. 2004.