Xinnian Dong

Arts and Sciences Professor of Biology in the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences

Office: 
4213 French Family Science Center, Durham, NC 27708
Campus Box: 
Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708-1000
Phone: 
(919) 613-8176
Email: 
xdong@duke.edu
Using Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system, my laboratory studies the mechanisms of plant defense against microbial pathogens. We focus on a specific response known as systemic acquired resistance (SAR). SAR, which can be induced by a local infection, provides the plants with long lasting, systemic resistance against a broad spectrum of pathogens. Salicylic acid (SA; an active ingredient of aspirin) has been found to be the endogenous signal of SAR. Using a genetic approach, our laboratory identified genes involved in the regulation of SAR. Molecular and genetic analyses are being carried out to understand the gene function and to elucidate the SAR signaling pathway. These SAR-regulating genes are also favorite targets for molecular engineering of disease-resistance crops.

Education

  • Ph.D., Northwestern University 1988

  • B.S., National Wuhan University 1982

Xu, G, Yuan, M, Ai, C, Liu, L, Zhuang, E, Karapetyan, S, Wang, S, and Dong, X. "uORF-mediated translation allows engineered plant disease resistance without fitness costs." Nature 545, no. 7655 (May 17, 2017): 491-494. Full Text

Xu, G, Greene, GH, Yoo, H, Liu, L, Marqués, J, Motley, J, and Dong, X. "Global translational reprogramming is a fundamental layer of immune regulation in plants." Nature 545, no. 7655 (May 17, 2017): 487-490. Full Text Open Access Copy

Mwimba, M, and Dong, X. "The CAT(2) Comes Back." Cell host & microbe 21, no. 2 (February 2017): 125-127. Full Text

Liu, L, Sonbol, F-M, Huot, B, Gu, Y, Withers, J, Mwimba, M, Yao, J, He, SY, and Dong, X. "Salicylic acid receptors activate jasmonic acid signalling through a non-canonical pathway to promote effector-triggered immunity." Nature communications 7 (October 11, 2016): 13099-. Full Text

Zavaliev, R, Dong, X, and Epel, BL. "Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) Modification Serves as a Primary Plasmodesmal Sorting Signal." Plant physiology 172, no. 2 (October 2016): 1061-1073.

Gu, Y, Zebell, SG, Liang, Z, Wang, S, Kang, B-H, and Dong, X. "Nuclear Pore Permeabilization Is a Convergent Signaling Event in Effector-Triggered Immunity." Cell 166, no. 6 (September 2016): 1526-1538.e11. Full Text

Withers, J, and Dong, X. "Posttranslational Modifications of NPR1: A Single Protein Playing Multiple Roles in Plant Immunity and Physiology." PLoS pathogens 12, no. 8 (August 11, 2016): e1005707-. Full Text

Saleh, A, Withers, J, Mohan, R, Marqués, J, Gu, Y, Yan, S, Zavaliev, R, Nomoto, M, Tada, Y, and Dong, X. "Erratum: Posttranslational Modifications of the Master Transcriptional Regulator NPR1 Enable Dynamic but Tight Control of Plant Immune Responses (Cell Host and Microbe (2015) 18 (169-182))." Cell Host and Microbe 19, no. 1 (January 13, 2016): 127-130. Full Text

Zebell, SG, and Dong, X. "Cell-Cycle Regulators and Cell Death in Immunity." Cell host & microbe 18, no. 4 (October 2015): 402-407. (Review) Full Text

Yang, L, Li, B, Zheng, X-Y, Li, J, Yang, M, Dong, X, He, G, An, C, and Deng, XW. "Corrigendum: Salicylic acid biosynthesis is enhanced and contributes to increased biotrophic pathogen resistance in Arabidopsis hybrids." Nature Communications 6 (August 12, 2015): 8145-8145. Full Text

Pages

Elucidation of translational regulatory mechanisms of plant immune responses awarded by National Science Foundation (Principal Investigator). 2017 to 2021

Salicylic acid in immunity and health: A small phytohormone with big physiological impacts awarded by National Institutes of Health (Principal Investigator). 2016 to 2021

Genetics Training Grant awarded by National Institutes of Health (Mentor). 1979 to 2020

Organization and Function of Cellular Structure awarded by National Institutes of Health (Mentor). 1975 to 2020

Dynamic regulation of salicylic acid biosynthesis & perception in plant immunity awarded by National Institutes of Health (Principal Investigator). 2004 to 2018

Innovation Corps - National Innovation Network Teams Program (I-CorpsTM Teams) awarded by National Science Foundation (Principal Investigator). 2017

Training Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology awarded by National Institutes of Health (Mentor). 2001 to 2017

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation awarded by Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation (Principal Investigator). 2011 to 2017

The Interplay Between the Circadian Clock and Plant Immune Mechanisms awarded by National Institutes of Health (Principal Investigator). 2012 to 2017

Intercellular signal transport in plant immune response awarded by US-Israel Binational Agricultural R&D Fund (Principal Investigator). 2014 to 2016

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