Xu Qiang

Dr. Qiang Xu is a professor in Horticulture, Director of the Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology from Huazhong Agricultural University, P.R. China. He got his Ph.D degree in 2007. His group built-up high-quality genomes of wild, cultivated citrus and its relative species, revealed the somatic mutation spectrum in vivo and in vitro, identified the citrus apomixis gene CitRWP, characterized the genes controlling fruit color, acidity, canker disease, HLB disease and developed systemic genetic information for breeding application in citrus. His current research includes Citrus wild germplasms and breeding Citrus, Genetic regulation and genes governing fruit nutritional quality, Citrus greening (HLB) disease and mechanism of HLB tolerance.

[1]2018.8-2019.2, Visiting scholar, Cornell University, USA. Supervisor: Prof. Edward Buckler

[2]2009.8-2010.8, Visiting scholar, Cornell University, USA. Supervisor: Prof. Li Li.

[3]2002-2007: Ph.D program. Molecular biology in horticulture, Huazhong Agricultural University, China. Supervisor: Prof. Xiuxin Deng

[4]2002-2005: Master degree. Molecular biology in horticulture, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China. Supervisor: Prof. Xiuxin Deng

[5]2002-2007: Ph.D program. Molecular biology in horticulture, Huazhong Agricultural University, China.

[6]2002-2005: Master degree. Molecular biology in horticulture, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China

[7]1998-2002: B.S. in Horticulture, Huazhong Agricultural University, China.

[1]2021-date, Director of the Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology, Ministry of Education

[2]2020-date, Vice-Dean, College of Horticulture and Forestry Science

[3]2017-date, Secretary of Chinese Society of Citriculture

[4]2012-date, Professor of fruit science, Huazhong Agricultural University

[5]2010-2012, Associate Professor of pomology, Huazhong Agricultural University

[6]2007-2010, Assistant professor of pomology, Huazhong Agricultural University

1) Wang X(#), Xu YT(#), Zhang SQ(#), Cao L(#), Huang Y, Cheng JF, Wu GZ, Tian SL, Chen CL, Liu Y, Yu HW, Yang XM, Lan H, Wang N, Wang L, Xu JD, Jiang XL, Xie ZZ, Tan ML, Larkin RM, Chen LL, Ma BG, Ruan YJ, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2017) Genomic analyses of primitive, wild and cultivated citrus provide insights into asexual reproduction, Nature Genetics 49: 765-772
2) Xu Q, Chen LL, Ruan X, Chen D, Zhu A, Chen C, Bertrand D, Jiao WB, Hao BH, Lyon MP, Chen J, Gao S, Xing F, Lan H, Chang JW, Ge X, Lei Y, Hu Q, Miao Y, Wang L, Xiao S, Biswas MK, Zeng W, Guo F, Cao H, Yang X, Xu XW, Cheng YJ, Xu J, Liu JH, Luo OJ, Tang Z, Guo WW, Kuang H, Zhang HY, Roose ML, Nagarajan N, Deng XX, Ruan Y. (2013) The draft genome of sweet orange (Citrus sinensis). Nature Genetics 45:59-66
3) Wang L(#), Huang Y#, Liu ZA#, He JX, Jiang XL, He F, Lu ZH, Yang SZ, Chen P, Yu HW, Zeng B, Ke LJ, Xie ZZ, Larkin RM, Jiang D, Ming R, Buckler ES, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2021) Somatic variations led to selection of acidic and acidless orange cultivars. Nature Plants 7, 954–96
4) Huang D, Wang X, Tang Z, Yuan Y, Xu Y, He J, Jiang X, Peng SA, Li L, Butelli E, Deng X, Xu Q* (2018) Subfunctionalization of the Ruby2-Ruby1 gene cluster during the domestication of citrus. Nature Plants 4: 930-941 (2018)
5) Wang L, Wang L, He F, Huang Y, He J, Yang SZ, Zeng JW, Deng CL, Jiang XL, Fang YW, Wen SH, Xu RW, Yu HW, Yang XM, Zhong GY, Chen CW, Yan X, Zhou CF, Zhang HY, Xie ZZ, Larkin RM, Deng XX and Xu Q*(2018) Genome of wild mandarin and domestication history of mandarin. Molecular Plant, 11: 1024-1037
6）Wang X(#), Liu SJ(#), Zuo H(#), Zheng WK(#), Zhang SS(#), Huang Y, Pingcuo G, Ying H, Zhao F, Li YR, Liu JW, Yi TS, Zan YJ, Larkin RM, Deng XX, Zeng XL*, Xu Q* (2021) Genomic basis of high altitude adaptation in Tibetan Prunus fruit trees. Current Biology 31 (17) 3848-3860.e8
7）Tang XM, Wang X, Huang Y, Ma L, Jiang XL, Rao MJ, Xu YT, Yin P, Yuan M, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2021) Natural variations of TFIIAγ gene and LOB1 promoter contribute to citrus canker disease resistance in Atalantia buxifolia. PLoS Genetics 2021 Jan 25;17(1):e1009316
8) Xu YT, Jia HH, Wu XM, Koltunow AM, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2021) Regulation of nucellar embryony, a mode of sporophytic apomixis in Citrus resembling somatic embryogenesis. Current Opinion in Plant Biology 2021, 59:101984
9) Zhu CQ(#), Zheng XJ(#), Huang Y(#), Ye JL, Chen P, Zhang CL, Zhao F, Xie ZZ, Zhang SQ, Wang N, Li H, Wang L, Tang XM, Chai LJ, Xu Q* and Deng XX* (2019) Genome sequencing and CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing of an early flowering mini citrus (Fortunella hindsii). Plant Biotechnology Journal, 2019, 17(11) 2199-2210
10) Rao MJ, Ding F, Wang N, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2019) Metabolic mechanisms of host species against Citrus Huanglongbing (greening disease). Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences, 37(6): 496-511
11）Liu YL(#), Ke LL(#), Wu GZ, Xu YT, Wu XM, Xia R, Deng XX, Xu Q*(2017) miR3954 is a trigger of phasiRNAs that affects flowering time in citrus. Plant Journal 92: 263-275
12) Huang Y#, Xu YT#, Jiang XL, Yu HW, Jia HH, Tan CM, Hu G, Hu YB, Rao MJ, Deng XX, Xu Q* (2021) Genome of a citrus rootstock and global DNA demethylation caused by heterografting. Horticulture Research 2021. 8:69
13) Hu B, Rao MJ, Deng X, Pandey SS, Hendrich C, Ding F, Wang N, Xu Q. (2021) Molecular signatures between citrus and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus. PLoS Pathog 17(12): e1010071

Authorized 9 Patents on molecular markers for Citrus breeding and Biotechnology.