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Dr. Chaoyang Zhao Assistant Project Scientist University of California, Riverside Department of Botany & Plant Sciences Batchelor Hall 3145 Riverside, CA 92521 Email: chaoyang.zhao@ucr.edu |
Education
Ph.D. -- Purdue University, Entomology - Insect Genetics and Genomics, Insect-plant Interactions
M.S. -- China Agricultural University, Entomology - Insect Pathology
B.S. -- China Agricultural University, Entomology
Ph.D. -- Purdue University, Entomology - Insect Genetics and Genomics, Insect-plant Interactions
M.S. -- China Agricultural University, Entomology - Insect Pathology
B.S. -- China Agricultural University, Entomology
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Research Interests
Insects are among the most diverse groups of animals on the planet and their astonishing diversity is exemplified in the ways they have developed to interact with their hosts, many of which are plants. Galling insects are a group of herbivores that induce the formation of abnormal host tissues, galls, to obtain protective habitats and nutrient sources. Hence, their tasks during insect-plant interactions include at least two aspects: overcoming plant defense and stimulating gall formation, both of which are achieved mainly through the delivery of insect effectors into plant cells. My research interests are focused on the molecular and genetic mechanisms that underlie the effector-mediated strategy galling insects employ for host manipulation. Using bioinformatic tools to analyze the expression profiles of effector genes in multiple Phylloxeridae species, I am currently aiming at the discovery of insect effectors that specify the formation of different galls through altering host physiological processes.
Google Scholar Profile
Insects are among the most diverse groups of animals on the planet and their astonishing diversity is exemplified in the ways they have developed to interact with their hosts, many of which are plants. Galling insects are a group of herbivores that induce the formation of abnormal host tissues, galls, to obtain protective habitats and nutrient sources. Hence, their tasks during insect-plant interactions include at least two aspects: overcoming plant defense and stimulating gall formation, both of which are achieved mainly through the delivery of insect effectors into plant cells. My research interests are focused on the molecular and genetic mechanisms that underlie the effector-mediated strategy galling insects employ for host manipulation. Using bioinformatic tools to analyze the expression profiles of effector genes in multiple Phylloxeridae species, I am currently aiming at the discovery of insect effectors that specify the formation of different galls through altering host physiological processes.
Google Scholar Profile
Publications
- Zhao C., Nabity PN. Phylloxerids share ancestral carotenoid genes of fungal origin with aphids and adelgids. Under Revision.
- Zhao C., Nabity PN. 2017. Plant manipulation through gall formation constrains amino acid transporter evolution in sap-feeding insects. BMC Evolutionary Biology. Accepted.
- Benoit J.B., Adelman Z.N., Reinhardt K., Dolan A., Jennings E.C., …Zhao C., … (The bed bug genomics consortium). 2016. Unique features of the bed bug, a global human ectoparasite, identified through genome sequencing. Nature Communications 7:10165.
- Bansal, R., Mittapelly, P., Chen, Y., Mamidala, P., Zhao, C., & Michel, A. 2016. Quantitative RT-PCR Gene Evaluation and RNA Interference in the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug. PloS one, 11(5), e0152730.
- Zhao C., Shukle R., Escalante NL., Richards S., Chen M-S., Stuart J.J. 2016. Avirulence Gene Mapping in the Hessian Fly (Mayetiola destructor) Reveals a Protein Phosphatase 2C Effector Gene Family. Journal of Insect Physiology 84:22-31.
- Zhao C., Escalante NL., Chen H., Benatti T.R., Qu J., …, Stuart J.J., Richards S. 2015. A Massive Expansion of Effector Genes Underlies Gall-Formation in the Wheat Pest Mayetiola destructor. Current Biology 25: 613-620.
- Zhao C., Alvarez M., Poland T.M., Mittapalli O. 2015. Core RNAi Machinery and Gene Knockdown in the Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis). Journal of Insect Physiology 72: 70-78.
- Zhao C., Doucet D., Mittapalli O. 2014. Characterization of Horizontally Transferred β-fructofuranosidase Genes in Agrilus planipennis. Insect Molecular Biology 23(6): 821-832.
- Aggarwal R., Subramanyam S., Zhao C., Chen M-S, Harris M.O., Stuart JJ. 2014. Avirulence Effector Discovery in a Plant Galling and Plant Parasitic Arthropod, the Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor). PLoS ONE 9(6): e100958. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0100958.
- Benatti T.R., Valicente F.H., Aggarwal R., Zhao C., Walling J.G., Chen M-S, Cambron S.E., Schemerhorn B.J., Stuart J.J. 2010. A neo-sex chromosome that drives postzygotic sex determination in the Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor). Genetics 184: 769-777.
- Aggarwal R., Benatti T., Gill N., Zhao C., Chen M.S., Schemerhorn B., Fellers J.P., Stuart J.J. 2009. A BAC-based physical map of the Hessian fly genome anchored to polytene chromosomes. BMC Genomics. 10:293.
- Li Y., Wang L., Gao X., Zhao C., Tian Z. 2004. Complete Nucleotide sequence of spheroidin genes of Calliptamus italicus entomopoxvirus (CIEPV) and Gomphocerus sibiricus entomopoxviurs (GSEPV). Insect Science 2(3): 173-182.
- Zhao C., Wang L., Li Y., Yun G. 2003. Cloning and analysis of Oedaleus asiaticus entomopoxvirus spheroidin gene. Virol. Sin. 18(6): 593-596.
