The Research Team of Vegetable breedingand resource innovation

Team Leader: Lei Jianjun

Thereare 4 Principle investigator, Dr Jianjun Lei, Dr Bihao Cao, Dr Guoju Chen, DrChangming Chen, and 16 postgraduate students in our team. Our Team studiesbreeding and resource innovation in vegetable crops at the molecular andphysiological levels. Our main focus is to study the function of genes involvedin capsaicin biosynthesis in Chilli pepper, glucosinolate biosynthesis ortransport in Chinese kale, resistance to heat stress and bacterial wilt ineggplants. Simultaneously, we study the development of new varieties of pepper,eggplant, cucumber, and Chinese kale. Our overall goal is, (1) to betterunderstand the molecular biology mechanism on capsaicin biosynthesis,glucosinolate biosynthesis or transport, resistant to abiotic stress andBacterial Wilt in plants; (2) to produce new germplasm and varieties of pepper,eggplant, cucumber, and Chinese kale with better quality and higher resistanceto heat stress, insect and virus.

Selected Funded Projects

1.    Screening and functional analysis of MYB transcriptionfactor family in the regulation of capsaicin biosynthesis.

2.    Characterization and functional analysis of candidatedisease resistant genes in Eggplant.

3.    Study on the molecular mechanism of SmNAC in regulation ofresistance to Bacterial Wilt in Eggplant

4.    Transgenic research on the improvement of major agronomictraits of several important Solanaceous fruit vegetables.

5.    Study on the molecular biology mechanism of heat resistanceand the development of heat-resistant germplasm in Chinese kale.

6.    Function analysis of BaODD as involved in the biosynthesisof 2-hydroxybut-3-enyl glucosinolate in Chinese kale.

7.    Study on the development of a new type of geneticallymodified Chinese kale plants.

8.    Breeding and application of new high quality andstress-resistant varieties in Eggplant

9.    Breeding and germplasm innovation of high quality andheat-resistant cucumber

Selected Publications

1.    Chen Na, Wu Shuanghua, Fu Jinglong, Cao Bihao*, Lei Jianjun,Chen Changming and Jiang Jin (2016) Overexpression of the Eggplant (Solanummelongena) NAC Family Transcription Factor SmNAC Suppresses Resistance toBacterial Wilt, Scientific Reports, 6:31568 DOI: 10.1038/srep31568

2.    Zhangsheng Zhu, Binmei Sun, Xiaoxia Xu, Hao Chen, LifangZou, Guoju Chen, Bihao Cao, Changming Chen* and Jianjun Lei* (2016)Overexpression of AtEDT1/HDG11 in Chinese Kale (Brassica oleracea var.alboglabra) Enhances Drought and Osmotic Stress Tolerance, Frontiers in PlantScience, 8:1285 doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2016.01285

3.    Shaoqun Liu, Wanshun Li, Yimin Wu, Changming Chen, JianjunLei* (2013) De Novo Transcriptome Assembly in Chili Pepper (Capsicumfrutescens) to Identify Genes Involved in the Biosynthesis of Capsaicinoids.PLOS ONE 8(1)

4.    Changming Chen, Ilya Letnik, Yael Hacham, Petre Dobrev,Bat-Hen Ben-Daniel, Radomíra Vanková, Rachel Amir and Gad Miller (2014)Ascorbate peroxidase 6 protects Arabidopsis thaliana desiccating andgerminating seeds from stress and mediates crosstalk between ROS, ABA andauxin, Plant physiology.166(1): 370-83  

5.    Changming Chen, Guoju Chen, Bihao Cao, Jianjun Lei* (2015)Transcriptional profiling analysis of genic male sterile–fertile Capsicumannuum reveal candidate genes for pollen development and maturation by RNA-Seqtechnology, Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture . 122:465–476

6.    Changming Chen, Shir Twito & Gad Miller* (2014) Newcross talk between ROS, ABA and auxin controlling seed maturation andgermination unraveled in APX6 deficient Arabidopsis seeds, Plant Signaling& Behavior, 9:12, e976489, DOI: 10.4161/15592324.2014.976489

7.    Changming Chen, Guoju Chen, Xuefeng Hao, Bihao Cao, QinghuaChen, Shaoqun Liu, Jianjun Le*i (2011) CaMF2, an anther-specific lipid transferprotein (LTP) gene, affects pollen development in Capsicum annuum L.. PlantScience. 181(4):439-48. (SCI，2011年影响因子2.94 )

8.    Changming Chen, Xuefeng Hao, Guoju Chen, Bihao Cao, QinghuaChen, Shaoqun Liu, Jianjun Lei* (2012) Characterization of a new malesterility-related gene Camf1 in Capsicum annuum L.. Molecular Biology Reports.39(1):737–744

9.    Changming Chen, Shaoqun Liu, Xuefeng Hao, Guoju Chen, BihaoCao, Qinghua Chen, Jianjun Lei* (2012) Characterization of a PectinMethylesterase Gene Homolog, CaPME1, Expressed in Anther Tissues of Capsicumannuum L.. Plant Molecular Biology Reporter.

10.  Ling Yin, Changming Chen, Guoju Chen,Bihao Cao and Jianjun Lei* (2015) Molecular Cloning, Expression Pattern andGenotypic Effects on Glucoraphanin Biosynthetic Related Genes in Chinese Kale(Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra Bailey). Molecules, 20: 20254–20267

11.  Zhu Zhangsheng， Xu Xiaoxia; Cao Bihao， Chen Changming， Chen, Chen Qinghua， Xiang Chengbin， Chen Guoju， Lei Jianjun*（2015）Pyramiding of AtEDT1/HDG11 and Cry2Aa2into pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) enhances drought tolerance and insectresistance without yield decrease， Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture,120 (3): 919-932.

12.  Shaoqun Liu, Changming Chen, GuojuChen, Bihao Cao, Qinghua Chen, Jianjun Lei (2012) RNA-sequencingtag profiling of the placenta and pericarp of pungent pepper provides robustcandidates contributing to capsaicinoid biosynthesis. Plant Cell Tiss OrganCult.110(1):111-121  

13.  Xufeng Xiao, Jianjun Lei, Bihao Cao,Guoju Chen, Changming Chen（2012）cDNA-AFLP analysis on bolting orflowering of flowering Chinese cabbage and molecular characteristics ofBrcuDFR-like/BrcuAXS gene. Molecular Biology Reports. 39(7): 7525 – 7531

14.  Cao Bihao, Lv Yaqing, Chen Guoju, LeiJianjun,Functional characterization of the translationally controlled tumorprotein (TCTP) gene associated with growth and defense response in cabbage.Plant Cell Tissue and Organ Culture  2010， 103（2）: 217-226

Research Achivement  

15.  The Innovation of Germplasm Resources,Breeding and Demonstration of New Leafy Vegetables Varieties in South China.The second prize for Scientific Advencement of Guangzhou （2015B207R08）.

16.  China Invention Patent, an extractionproducts of Solanum touvum and its extracting method and application (CN101828578A).

17.  China Invention Patent,A preparationmethod of a gene resistant to plant Ralstonia solanacearum and itsapplication (ZL201010191504.8)

1.     Validation of two vegetable varieties, "Huajiao 5"Pepper Varieties and "Hualv 1" cucumber varieties