The long-term research interest of my laboratory is to understand how gene expression is regulated in response to internal signals and external stimuli. We use combined high throughput experimental and bioinformatic approaches to address this question at the genome scale in model plant systems. We have been using genomic tiling microarrays and next-generation sequencing technologies to measure a suit of molecular parameters associated with global transcriptional regulation, including profiles of mRNA and non-coding RNAs, epigenetic markings and genome architecture. Results from these experimental approaches entail a hierarchy of information that is processed in living cells through complex regulatory networks. We integrate these experimental data with computational modeling to identify the underlying transcriptional regulatory networks that define biological processes such as endosperm development, hybrid vigor, and phenotypic variation between closely related species. Our results provide insights at the genome level to the u nderstanding of these processes that are important to meet the global challenges of changing climate and ever-increasing demand for food and energy. 

For more information about research interests, visit my lab website.

Li L, He H, Zhang J, Wang X, Bai S, Stolc V, Tongprasit W, Young ND, Yu O, and Deng XW. 2008. Transcriptional analysis of highly syntenic regions between Medicago truncatula and Glycine max using tiling microarrays. Genome Biology 9, R57.

Li L, Wang X, Stolc V, Li X, Zhang D, Su N, Tongprasit W, Li S, Cheng Z, Wang J, and Deng XW. 2006. Genome-wide transcription analyses in rice using tiling microarrays. Nature Genetics 38, 124-129.

Li L, Wang X, Xia M, Stolc V, Su N, Peng Z, Li S, Wang J, Wang X, and Deng XW. 2005. Tiling microarray analysis of rice chromosome 10 to identify the transcriptome and relate its expression to chromosomal architecture. Genome Biology 6, R52.