Professor HE Junxian
Address (Office): G78B, Science Centre (South), CUHK
(Lab): G02/04, Run Run Shaw Science Building, CUHK
Phone (Office): (852) 3943 6299
(Lab): (852) 3943 1271
Fax (852) 2603 6382
Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Education1986 BSc,Lanzhou University
1989 M.Sc, Lanzhou University
1993 PhD, Lanzhou University
PositionAssociate Professor, School of Life Sciences, CUHK
Investigator, State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, CUHK
Research InterestsHormone signal transduction in plants;
Nitrogen signaling and nitrogen use efficiency;
Functional genomics of plant stress resistance.
Representative PublicationsLi Q.F., Lu J., Yu J.W., Zhang C.Q., He J.X.*, Liu Q.Q.* (2018) The brassinosteroid-regulated transcription factors BZR1/BES1 function as a coordinator in multisignal-regulated plant growth. Biochim Biophys Acta Gene Regul Mech.1861: 561-571.
Kuang J.F., Chen J.Y., Liu X.C., Han Y.C., Xiao Y.Y., Shan W., Tang Y., Wu K.Q., He J.X.*, Lu W.J.* (2017) The transcriptional regulatory network mediated by banana (Musa acuminata) dehydration-responsive element binding (MaDREB) transcription factors in fruit ripening. New Phytol 21: 762-781.
He J.X.* (2016) Signalling: Ying-yang hormonal crosstalk. Nature Plants 2, Article number: 16023. doi:10.1038/nplants.2016.23.
Li Q.F., He J.X.* (2016) BZR1 interacts with HY5 to mediate brassinosteroid- and light-regulated cotyledon opening in Arabidopsis in darkness. Mol Plant 9:113–125.
Zhang Y., Liu Z., Wang J., Chen Y., Bi Y., He J.X.* (2015) Brassinosteroid is required for sugar promotion of hypocotyl elongation in Arabidopsis in darkness. Planta 242:881-893.
Wang X., Bian Y., Cheng K., Gu L.F., Ye M.L., Zou H.F., S.S.M. Sun and He J.X.* (2013) A Large-scale protein phosphorylation analysis reveals novel phosphorylation motifs and phosphoregulatory networks in Arabidopsis. J Proteomics 78:486-98.
Li Q.F., C Wang, L Jiang, S Li, S.S.M Sun*. and J.X. He*. (2012) An interaction between BZR1 and DELLAs mediates direct signaling crosstalk between brassinosteroids and gibberellins in Arabidopsis. Sci Signal 5:ra72. (Summary/Abstract/Reprint/FullText) (Highlight by Nature Reviews)
Jiang L, Y. Wang, Q.F. Li, L.O. Bj?rn, J.X. He* and S.S. Li*. (2012) Arabidopsis STO/BBX24 negatively regulates UV-B signaling by interacting with COP1 and repressing HY5 transcriptional activity. Cell Res 22:1046-1057. (Evaluated by Faculty 1000)
Wang X., Y.Y. Bian, K. Cheng, H.F. Zou*, S.S.M Sun* and J.X. He*. (2012) A comprehensive proteomic study of nitrogen deprivation in Arabidopsis reveals complex regulatory network of plant nitrogen responses. J Proteome Res 11:2301-2315.
Gampala, S.L., Kim, T.W., He, J.X., Tang, W.Q., Bai, M., Guan, S., Sun, Y., Gendron, J.M., Chen, J., Ferl, J., Ehrhardt, D., Chong, K., Burlingame, A.L., and Wang, Z.Y. (2007) An essential role for 14-3-3 proteins in brassinosteroid signal transduction in Arabidopsis. Dev Cell 13, 177–189.
He, J.X., Gendron, J.M., Sun, Y., Gampala, S.L., Gendron, N., Sun, C.Q., and Wang, Z.Y. (2005) BZR1 is a transcriptional repressor with dual roles in brassinosteroid homeostasis and growth responses. Science 307:1634-1638.
Wang, Z.Y. and He, J.X. (2004) Brassinosteroid signal transduction – choices of signals and receptors. Trends in Plant Sci 9: 91-96.
He, J.X., Fujioka, S., Li, T.C., Kang, S.G., Seto, H., Takatsuto, S.,Yoshida, S., and Jang, J.C. (2003) Sterols regulate development and gene expression in Arabidopsis. Plant Physiol 131:1258-1269.
He, J.X., JM Gendron, Y. Yang, J. Li, Z.Y. Wang. (2002) The GSK3-like kinase BIN2 phosphorylates and destabilizes BZR1, a positive regulator of the brassinosteroid signaling pathway in Arabidopsis.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 99:10185-90.
Research Grants2018-2021: NSFC-RGC Joint Scheme. Mechanisms by which brassinosteroids regulate plant photomorphorgenesis through GATA and MYB transcription factors. (Project code: N_CUHK452/17), HK$1,250,000. (PI)
2017-2025: Hong Kong UGC-AoE Grant, Center for Genomic Studies on Plant-Environment Interaction for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security. (Project code: AoE/M-403/16), HK$75.59 M. (Co-PI)
2017-2019: Research Grant Council (RGC) GRF, Functional study of a new MYB-like transcription factor in secondary cell wall formation in Arabidopsis. (Project code: 14148916), HK$1,072,55. (PI)
2016-2018: Research Grant Council (RGC) GRF, Characterization and gene functional study of a new albino mutant in Arabidopsis. (Project code: 14121915), HK$1,014,975. (PI)
2014-2018: Hong Kong UGC-AoE Grant, Center for Organelle Biogenesis and Function. (Project code: AoE/M-05/12), HK$47.25 M. (Co-I)
2013-2015: Research Grant Council (RGC) GRF, Mechanistic studies of brassinosteroid-induced stress resistance in Arabidopsis. HK$1,200,000. (PI)
2011-2013: Research Grant Council (RGC) GRF, Identify new regulators of brassinosteroid signaling and plant development through the bzr1-1D suppressor mutant screen in Arabidopsis. HK$1,000,000. (PI)
2010-2012: Research Grant Council (RGC) GRF, Identify new downstream signaling components in the brassinosteroid signal transduction pathway in Arabidopsis - Functional characterization of two BZR1 interacting proteins ZIP1 and ZIP2. HK$944,700. (PI)
2012-2015: National Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Genomic study of drought tolerance mechanisms inplants. RMB3.0M. (PI)
2012-2016: Shenzhen ‘Peacock’ Project, Applied basic researches of plant molecular biotechnologies and their applications in modern agriculture. RMB30.0M. (Co-I, core member)
2011-2013: National Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Functions and mechanisms of the Arabidopsis STO gene in plant UV-B signaling. RMB360,000. (Co-I)
2009-2010: National Transgenic Project of China, Development of transgenic corn with high nitrogen use efficiency. RMB4.37M. (Sub-project PI)
2009-2010: National Transgenic Project of China, Discovery and mechanistic study of genes important for crop yield, nutrition and stress resistance. RMB 2.96M. (Co-I)
Professional Activities
Editorship:
Editorial Board Member, Acta Botanica Sinica (2009-).
Editorial Board Member/Reviewing Editor, Frontiers in Plant Science (2015-)
Editorial Board Member/Reviewing Editor, Scientific Reports (2016-)
Editorial Board Member/Reviewing Editor, J of Plant Growth Regulation (2016-2017)
Editorial Board Member/Reviewing Editor, Plant Science (2018-)
Peer reviewer:
Nature Communications, Nature Plants, Plant Cell, Plant Physiol, Mol Plant, Mol Cell Proteomics, Scientific Reports, Plant & Cell Environ, J Exp Bot, Frontiers in Plant Sci, Plant Science, J Genetics and Genomics (JGG), Plant Cell Reports, Planta, J Integr Plant Biol, Protoplasma, J Proteome Res, J Proteomics, PloS One, etc.