Biography of the Group Leader

Dr. Chao Yang received his master’s degree on biochemistry and molecular biology under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Ping Wu at Zhejiang University, China in 2014. He then went abroad and joined the research group of Prof. Dr. Arp Schnittger at the University of Hamburg, Germany for his doctoral training focusing on the regulation of plant meiosis. After obtaining his PhD degree (with the final grade of Summa Cum Laude) in 2019, he continued to work in Schnittger’s lab as a postdoctoral fellow. In 2021, he started his own research group at Huazhong Agricultural University as a group leader. His current research focuses on the molecular regulation of meiosis using Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus as model organisms.

Research Field

Sexual reproduction relies on the generation of gametes that contain only half of the genetic material of the parental cells; this reduction in chromosome number is achieved through meiosis. Besides its role in maintaining genome size over generations, meiosis generates genetic diversity through a random selection of either the maternal or the paternal homologous chromosome and by an exchange of DNA segments between homologs by meiotic recombination.

Our group is mainly interested in understanding the molecular regulatory mechanisms of meiosis, especially of the meiotic pairing and recombination, by using Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus as the model organisms.

Unraveling the mystery of meiosis

Publications (# co-first author, * corresponding author)

1. Chu L, Zhuang J, Geng M, Zhang Y, Zhu J, Zhang C, Schnittger A, Yi B*, Yang C* ASYNAPSIS3 has diverse dosage-dependent effects on meiotic crossover formation in Brassica napus. The Plant Cell, 2024, koae207, https://doi.org/10.1093/plcell/koae207
   

2. Pochon G^#, Henry IM^#, Yang C^#, Lory N, Fernández-Jiménez N, Böwer F, Hu B, Carstens L, Tsai HT, Pradillo M, Comai L*, Schnittger A*, The Arabidopsis Hop1 homolog ASY1 mediates cross-over assurance and interference, PNAS Nexus, 2023, 2(3), pgac302, https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac302

3. Yang C*, Sofroni K, Hamamura Y, Hu B, Elbasi HT, Balboni M, Chu L, Stang D, Heese M, Schnittger A* ZYP1-mediated recruitment of PCH2 to the synaptonemal complex remodels the chromosome axis leading to crossover restriction. Nucleic Acids Research, 2022, 50(22): 12924-12937.

4. Cheng J, Xu L, Bergér V, Bruckmann A, Yang C, Schubert V, Grasser, KD, Schnittger A, Zheng B and Jiang, H* H3K9 demethylases IBM1 and JMJ27 are required for male meiosis in Arabidopsis thaliana. New Phytologist, 2022, 235(6): 2252-2269.
   

5. Yang C, Hu B, Portheine SM, Chuenban P, Schnittger A* State changes of the HORMA protein ASY1 are mediated by an interplay between its closure motif and PCH2. Nucleic Acids Research, 2020, 48(20): 11521-11535.（封面论文）

6. Yang C, Sofroni K, Wijnker E, Hamamura Y, Carstens L, Harashima H, Stolze SC, Vezon D, Chelysheva L, Orban-Nemeth Z, Pochon G, Nakagami H, Schlögelhofer P, Grelon M, Schnittger A* The Arabidopsis Cdk1/Cdk2 homolog CDKA;1 controls the chromosome axis assembly during plant meiosis. The EMBO Journal , 2020, 39(3): e101625.（封面论文）

7. Yang C, Hamamura Y, Sofroni K, Böwer F, Stolze SC, Nakagami H, Schnittegr A* SWITCH 1/DYAD is a WINGS APART-LIKE antagonist that maintains sister chromatid cohesion in meiosis. Nature Communications, 2019, 10(1): 1-15.

8. Sofroni K, Takatsuka H, Yang, C, Dissmeyer N, Komaki S, Hamamura Y, Böttger L, Umeda M, Schnittger A* (2020) CDKD-dependent activation of CDKA;1 controls microtubule dynamics and cytokinesis during meiosis. Journal of Cell Biology, 2020, 219(8).

9. Bolboni M, Yang C, Komaki S, Brun J, Schnittger A* COMET functions as a PCH2 cofactor in regulating the HORMA domain protein ASY1. Current Biology, 2020, 30(21): 4113-4127. e6.

10. Calvo BV, Wijnen C, Yang C, Lukhovitskaya N, Snoo B, Hohenwarter L, Keurentjes J, Jong H, Schnittger A, Wijnker, E* Meiotic crossover reduction by virus-induced gene silencing enables the efficient generation of chromosome substitution lines and reverse breeding in Arabidopsis thaliana. The Plant Journal, 2020, 104(5): 1437-1452.

11. Yang C^#, Hu H^#, Ren H^#, Kong Y, Lin H, Guo J, Wang L, He Y, Ding X, Grabsztunowicz M, Mulo P, Chen T, Liu Y, Wu Z, Wu Y, Mao C, Wu P, Mo X* LIGHT-INDUCED RICE1 Regulates Light-Dependent Attachment of LEAF-TYPE FERREDOXIN-NADP+ OXIDOREDUCTASE to the Thylakoid Membrane in Rice and Arabidopsis. The Plant Cell , 2016, 28(3): 712-728. # 共同一作

12. Wang Z, Ruan W, Shi J, Zhang L, Xiang D, Yang C, Li C, Wu Z, Liu Y, Yu Y, Shou H, Mo X, Mao C*, Wu P Rice SPX1 and SPX2 inhibit phosphate starvation responses through interacting with PHR2 in a phosphate-dependent manner. PNAS, 2014, 111(41): 14953-14958.