Prof. Liesche Johannes

Contact Information:

Mailing Address:

College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University

Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, P. R. China

E-mail: liesche@nwafu.edu.cn

Office: North Campus, Former Insect Museum, Center for Biomass Energy, B309

Research Interest:

Sugars are the central unit of carbon and energy in plants. From green leaves, where they are produced via photosynthesis, they are transported in the highly specialized cells of the phloem vascular tissue to carbon sink organs such as roots, seeds and fruits. The transport rate and direction depend on a multitude of developmental and environmental factors. Despite the importance of sugar transport for whole-plant physiology, little is known about its regulation at the molecular level. Our aim is to identify the genetic factors that regulate whole-plant sugar transport, especially in relation to environmental conditions and stress responses. Methods that we routinely use are live-cell microscopy, especially single-molecule imaging, electron microscopy, theoretical modeling and the various techniques of biochemistry and molecular biology.

Education Experiences:

University of Copenhagen, Ph.D. in Cell Biology, 2012

Humboldt University Berlin, German Diploma in Biology, 2008

Professional Experiences:

Professor at the College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University (2019-present)

Associate Professor at the College of Life Sciences, Norwest A&F University (2015-2018)

Founder and Director of Scientific Focus A/S (2014-2015)

Postdoctoral fellow at the University of Copenhagen (2012-2015)

Visiting Scholar at Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute for Plateau Biology (2014)

Postdoctoral fellow at Institute for Plant and Food Research New Zealand (2012)

Honors and Awards:

Shaanxi 100 Talent Award, 2017

Chinese Academy of Sciences Fellowship for Young International Scientists, 2014

Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences Researcher of the Year Award, 2014

Selected publications:

Liesche J*, Vincent C, Han X, Zwieniecki M, Schulz A, Gao C, Bravard R, Marker S, Bohr T. The Mechanism of Sugar Export from Long Conifer Needles. New Phytol. 2021, Feb 26.

Liu X, Cui H, Zhang B, Song M, Chen S, Xiao C, Tang Y, Liesche J*. Reduced pectin content of cell walls prevents stress-induced root cell elongation in Arabidopsis. J Exp Bot. 2021, 72:1073-1084.

Gao C, Liu X, De Storme N, Jensen KH, Xu Q, Yang J, Liu X, Chen S, Martens HJ, Schulz A, Liesche J*. Directionality of Plasmodesmata-Mediated Transport in Arabidopsis Leaves Supports Auxin Channeling. Curr Biol. 2020, 30:1970-1977.

Xu Q, Yin S, Ma Y, Song M, Song Y, Mu S, Li Y, Liu X, Ren Y, Gao C, Chen S, Liesche J*. Carbon export from leaves is controlled via ubiquitination and phosphorylation of sucrose transporter SUC2. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020, 117:6223-6230.

Liu X, Li J, Zhao H, Liu B, Günther-Pomorski T, Chen S, Liesche J*. Novel tool to quantify cell wall porosity relates wall structure to cell growth and drug uptake. J Cell Biol. 2019, 218:1408-1421.

Liesche J, Gao C, Binczycki P, Andersen SR, Rademaker H, Schulz A, Martens HJ*. Direct comparison of leaf plasmodesma structure and function in relation to phloem loading type. Plant Physiol. 2019, 179:1768-1778.

Han X, Turgeon R, Schulz A, Liesche J*. Environmental conditions, not sugar export efficiency, limit the length of conifer leaves. Tree Physiol. 2019, 39:312-319.

Liesche J, Schulz A*. Phloem transport in gymnosperms: a question of pressure and resistance. Curr Opin Plant Sci. 2018, 43:36-42.

Xu Q, Chen SY, Ren YJ, Chen S, Liesche J*. Regulation of sucrose transporters and phloem loading in response to environmental cues. Plant Physiol. 2018, 176:930-945.

Liesche J*, Pace MR, Xu QY, Li Y, Chen S. Height-related scaling of phloem anatomy and the evolution of sieve element end wall types in woody plants; New Phyotol. 2017, 214:245-256.

Liesche J*. Sucrose transporters and plasmodesmal regulation in passive phloem loading; J Integr Plant Biol. 2017, 59:311-321.

Liesche J, He HX, Grimm B, Schulz A, Kühn C*. Recycling of Solanum sucrose transporters expressed in yeast, tobacco, and in mature phloem sieve elements. Mol Plant. 2010, 3:1064-1074.