Yi-Hong Wang

1984 B.S. (Plant Breeding) Nanjing Agricultural University, China

1992 M.S. (Plant Breeding) University of the Philippines, Philippines

1999 Ph.D. (Genetics) Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA

Teaching:

I teach BIOL 233 (Genetics and Evolution) every fall, BIOL 337 (Genetics of Human Diseases) and BIOL 455G (Molecular Biology) in alternate springs

Research description:

Plants are the most critical sources of food and fiber. Plant biomass or sugar yields are the direct indicator of genetic efficiency in phenotypic expression of these traits. In our lab, we study plant biomass using Setaria viridis (green millet) as the model system in two aspects. First, we identified a gene, SnRK1βγ2, that can double or triple biomass yield in RTx 430 sorghum by increasing tiller number and internodal length (see Upadhyaya et al. 2022). We are exploring the molecular mechanisms how this gene achieves these.

Second, we are comparing the sequenced large and small C4 grasses using a phylogenomics approach to identify plant size genes. We use tissue culture and other tools to generate economically beneficial plants which are also used to study the molecular mechanism of homologous and heterologous gene expression driven by strong promoters.

Students interested in working in my lab for their PhD degrees are encouraged to contact me directly through email (C00257316@louisiana.edu).

Selected Publications:

Hari D. Upadhyaya, Lihua Wang, Andrew H Paterson, Laxmipathi Gowda Cholenahalli, Rajendra Kumar, Jieqin Li and Yi-Hong Wang. 2024. Association mapping identifies stable loci underlying developmental and reproductive traits in sorghum. Genome, dx.doi.org/10.1139/gen-2024-0030.

Chudamani Sharma Prakash, Lihua Wang, Qi Shen, Jieqin Li, Yi-Hong Wang. 2024. Overexpression of a sorghum SNF4 gene increases plant height in Setaria viridis but not in rice. Czech Journal of Genetics and Plant Breeding, https://doi.org/10.17221/63/2024-CJGPB.

Chudamani Sharma Prakash, Yi-Hong Wang. 2024. Overexpression of pepper capsaicinoid pathway genes in tomatoes. European Journal of Biology DOI: 10.26650/EurJBiol.2024.1442720.

Chudamani Sharma Prakash, Jieqin Li, Paul W. Bible, Carina A. Collins, Wenmiao Tu, Jingyi Xu, Yi-Hong Wang. 2024. Phylogenomic identification and overexpression of plant size related genes in Setaria viridis and rice. Grassland Science 70: 151-159.

Lihua Wang, Wenmiao Tu, Jin Peng, Yanlong Liu, Junli Du, Jiacheng Zheng, Yi-Hong Wang and Jieqin Li. 2024. Genome wide association study of plant color in Sorghum bicolor. Frontiers in Plant Science 15:1320844. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1320844.

Chudamani Sharma Prakash, Jieqin Li, Yi-Hong Wang 2023. A grafting-induced Sorghum-maize Hybrid. Agriculture & Forestry 69: 255-261.

Jieqin Li; Lihua Wang; Paul W. Bible; Wenmiao Tu; Jian Zheng; Peng Jin; Yanlong Liu; Junli Du; Jiacheng Zheng; Yi-Hong Wang; Qiuwen Zhan 2023. A chromosome-scale genome sequence of sudangrass (Sorghum sudanense) highlights the genome evolution and regulation of dhurrin biosynthesis. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 136: 60. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00122-023-04262-9.

Wenmiao Tu; Lihua Wang; Peng Jin; Ruirui Meng; Jian Zheng; Yanlong Liu; Yi-Hong Wang; Jieqin Li. 2023 Construction of high density genetic map and QTL mapping in a sorghum Tx623A×sudangrass S722 population. Grassland Science 69: 132-141. doi.org/10.1111/grs.12394.

Upadhyaya HD, L Wang, CS Prakash, Y Liu, L Gao, R Meng, K Seetharam, CLL Gowda, K Ganesamurthy, SK Singh, RK umar, J Li, Yi-Hong Wang 2022. Genome-wide association mapping identifies an SNF4 ortholog that impacts biomass and sugar yield in sorghum and sugarcane. Journal of Experimental Botany 73: 3584–3596.

Lihua Wang, Yanlong Liu, Li Gao, Xiaocui Yang, Xu Zhang, Shaoping Xie, Meng Chen, Yi-Hong Wang, Jieqin Li, Yixin Shen. 2022. Identification of candidate forage yield genes in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) using integrated GWAS and RNA-Seq. Frontiers in Plant Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.788433.

Wang L, Upadhyaya HD, Zheng J, Liu Y, Singh SK, Gowda CL, Kumar RK, Zhu Y, Wang YH, Li J. Genome-wide Association Mapping Identifies Novel Panicle Morphology Loci and Candidate Genes in Sorghum. Frontiers in Plant Science 2021. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.743838

Jin P, Wang L, Zhao W, Zheng J, Wang YH, Liu Y, Meng R, Dai J, Zhou L, Li J. Construction of high density genetic map and QTL mapping in sorghum× sudangrass. Euphytica. 2021 217, 162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-021-02895-9.

Hari D Upadhyaya, Mani Vetriventhan, Abdullah M. Asiri, Vania C R Azevedo, Hari C Sharma, Rajan Sharma, Suraj Prasad Sharma, Yi-Hong Wang. 2019. Multi-trait diverse germplasm sources from mini core collection for sorghum improvement. Agriculture 2019, 9(6), 121; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture9060121

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, DVSSR Sastry, SL Dwivedi, PV Vara Prasad, A. Millie Burrell, Robert R Klein, Geoffrey P Morris, Patricia E Klein 2016. Association mapping of low temperature germinability and seedling vigor in sorghum. Genome 59: 137-145.

Park MR, Y-H Wang, KH Hasenstein 2014. Profiling gene expression in germinating Brassica roots. Plant Mol Biol Rep 32:541-548.

Wang Y-H, Acharya A, Burrell AM, Klein RR, Klein PE, Hasenstein KH. 2013. Mapping and candidate genes associated with saccharification yield in sorghum. Genome 56:659-665.

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, R Sharma, S Sharma 2013. SNP markers linked to leaf rust and grain mold in sorghum. Molecular Breeding 32: 451-462.

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, CLL Gowda, S Sharma 2013. Association mapping of maturity and plant height using SNP markers with the sorghum mini core collection. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 126:2003-2015.

Wang Y-H, Upadhyaya HD, Burrell AM, Sahraeian SM, Klein RR, Klein PE 2013. Genetic structure and linkage disequilibrium in a diverse, representative collection of the C4 model plant, Sorghum bicolor. G3: Genes Genomes Genet. 3: 783-793.

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, R Sharma, S Sharma 2013. Identification of genetic markers linked to anthracnose resistance in sorghum using association analysis. Theoretical and Applied Genetics 126:1649-1657.

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, S Sharma, S Singh 2012. Association mapping of height and maturity across five environments using the sorghum mini core collection. Genome 55: 471-479.

Upadhyaya HD, Y-H Wang, S Sharma, S Singh, KH Hasenstein 2012. SSR markers linked to kernel weight and tiller number in sorghum identified by association mapping. Euphytica 187: 401-410.

Wang Y-H, Bible P, Loganantharaj R, Upadhyaya HD 2012. Identification of SSR markers associated with height using pool-based genome-wide association mapping in sorghum. Mol Breed 30: 281-292.

Wang Y-H, DD Poudel, KH Hasenstein 2011. Identification of SSR markers associated with saccharification yield using pool-based genome-wide association mapping in sorghum. Genome 54:883-889.

Book Chapters:

Upadhyaya HD , Dwivedi SL, Wang Y-H, Vetriventhan M 2016. Sorghum Genetic Resources. In: I. Ciampitti and V. Prasad (edS.), Sorghum: State of the Art and Future Perspectives (Agronomy Monographs 58). American Society of Agronomy and Crop Science Society of America, Inc. doi:10.2134/agronmonogr58.2014.0056.5

Wang Y-H, Upadhyaya HD, Dweikat I. 2015. Sorghum. In: M Singh and HD Upadhyaya (eds). Genetics and Genomic Resources for Grain Cereals Improvement. Academic Press, pp 227-251.

Wang Y-H, Burow GB, Burke JJ. 2014. Genetic mapping of abiotic stress in sorghum. In: Wang Y-H, HD Upadhyaya, C. Kole (eds). Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Sorghum. Taylor & Francis/CRC Press. pp 182-197.

Wang Y-H 2012. Molecular genetic mapping and map-based cloning. In: Wang Y-H, TK Behera, C. Kole (eds). Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Cucurbits. Taylor & Francis/CRC Press. pp 199-224.

Wang Y-H 2012. Mapping and molecular breeding of monogenic traits. In: Wang Y-H, TK Behera, C. Kole (eds). Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Cucurbits. Taylor & Francis/CRC Press. pp 225-237.

Books Edited:

Rakshit S, Y-H Wang (eds). 2016. The Sorghum Genome (book series: Compendium of Plant Genomes). Springer Nature. ISBN 978-3-319-47787-9.

Wang Y-H, HD Upadhyaya, C. Kole (eds). 2014. Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Sorghum. Taylor & Francis/CRC Press. ISBN: 978-1-48221-008-8. 344p.

Wang Y-H, TK Behera, C. Kole (eds). 2012. Genetics, Genomics and Breeding of Cucurbits. Taylor & Francis/CRC Press. ISBN: 978-1-57808-766-2. 418p.