Research Interests:
The long-term goal of our research program is to understand the molecular mechanisms of plant innate immunity. We study plant defense against pathogen infection in the context of gene regulation, protein-protein interaction and signal transduction using the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana. Our program aims to discover new regulatory components of plant disease resistance and to elucidate the biochemical functions of a number of regulators we have already identified. Understanding the innate ability of plants to defend themselves against pathogen infection promises to revolutionize disease control practices in our fields using environmentally friendly strategies.
