Sheng Yang He wants to understand how microbial pathogens manipulate plants to cause disease. He and his team focus their work on a model system consisting of the host plant Arabidopsis thaliana and the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. The team tracks host-pathogen interactions on a genetic and genomic level to elucidate the basic principles that govern pathogenesis, such as virulence factors, jasmonate signaling, and stomatal function. In addition, the team is investigating how endogenous microbiota and external climatic factors, such as temperature and moisture, influence plant pathogenesis. He’s work may lead to innovative strategies for infectious disease control and help develop sustainable ways to produce food in the context of a changing climate.
Microbes flood leaves and then proliferate in the water-logged patches. New research answers a long-standing question about just how this happens and points toward a potential countermeasure. Plants’ immune defenses falter during heat waves, rendering them more vulnerable to insects and pathogens under climate change. HHMI scientists have now figured out why high temperatures knock out a key defense system and they’ve come up with a strategy that bolsters plant immunity. HHMI researchers identify the mechanisms that pathogenic bacteria use to waterlog the space between plant cells in the leaves, allowing the bacteria to reproduce and spread infection.   HHMI scientists are among 84 newly elected members. Fifteen scientists working in the plant sciences gain flexible support from HHMI and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to move their research in creative new directions.