Shunhong Dai, Ph.D.
Assistant Research Member
sdai@danforthcenter.org
My research is focused on understanding plant diseases and development through analysis of transcriptional regulatory circuitry.
Misexpression of important genes involved in plant growth and development caused by pathogen infection is generally expected
to lead to disease symptoms. Using rice tungro disease as a model, we identified host transcriptional regulators that control
virus gene expression and are important for rice growth and development. Transgenic rice plants that overexpress some of these
proteins exhibited enhanced resistance to the tungro disease. In addition, we have explored how a newly identified Arabidopsis
transcription factor functions as a circadian clock gene to regulate plant growth and stress responses.
Recent Publications:
Shunhong Dai*, Xiaoping Wei, Antonio A. Alfonso, Liping Pei, Ulysses G. Duque, Zhihong Zhang, Gina M. Babb, Roger N. Beachy*,
2008, Transgenic rice plants that over-express transcription factors RF2a and RF2b are tolerant to rice tungro virus replication and
disease. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 105(52): 21012-21016. (*corresponding author)
Liu, Y., Dai, S. and Beachy, R.N. 2007. Role of the C-terminal functional domains of rice bZIP proteins RF2a and RF2b in regulating
transcription. Biochem. J., 405:234-249
Tahzeeba Hossain, Ph.D.
Assistant Research Member
thossain@danforthcenter.org
Folate is a collective term for a group of B vitamins essential in one-carbon metabolism of most living organisms. Folate deficiency
has been linked to neural tube defects, megaloblastic anemia, impaired cognitive development, cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Folates are a dietary requirement for humans and animals because they are unable to synthesize this vitamin. Plants and certain
microbes can synthesize folate de novo and are major sources of folate for humans. Many staple crops, including rice and maize,
and various root and tuber crops are extremely low in folate. The primary research focus of our laboratory is to identify factors
that affect or regulate the folate synthesis pathway in plants. Our goal is to apply the knowledge gained to increase folate levels in
staple crops that are low in folate nutritional value. Using a bacterial enzyme responsible for catalyzing the first committed step of
the de novo pathway we increased folate content 2-4 fold in Arabidopsis thaliana, and identified a second rate limiting step. We are
currently working to overexpress genes involved in the rate limiting steps to increase the folate content in corn and sweetpotato.
Recent Publications:
T. Hossain and K. R. Schubert (2007). Metabolic Engineering of Folate Biosynthesis in Plants: Expression of Bacterial GTP
Cyclohydrolase 1 in Arabidopsis thaliana Results in Increased Pteridine and Folate Levels. In Gerrit Jansen and Godefridus J. Peters
(Eds.), Chemistry and Biology of Pteridines and Folates (pp 584-607). Heilbronn: SPS Publication.
2008 Scientific Report The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center 27
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