Dr. Nian Wang
Mr. and Mrs. J. R. (Rip) Graves Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Biotechnology
Program Emphasis
Plant-bacteria interactions, genetic improvement of citrus via CRISPR/Cas genome editing, and citrus bacterial diseases (Huanglongbing and Canker). Current research topics include:
- Genetic determinants and the signaling pathway underlying a pathogen (Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus)-triggered immune disease-citrus Huanglongbing
- Pathogen-triggered immune diseases
- CRISPR/Cas genome editing of citrus
- Transcriptional activator like effectors of Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri and canker susceptibility gene
- Citrus Huanglongbing (greening) and canker management
- Citrus microbiome
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News
- Congratulations to Ph.D. student Jiawen Wen for winning the 2025 Francis Aloysius Wood Memorial Award!
- Congratulations to Xiaoen Huang, Hongge Jia, Yuanchun Wang, and Jiawen Wen for winning the 2025 UF/IFAS “high impact” research publications award for the paper “Transgene-free genome editing of vegetatively propagated and perennial plant species in the T0 generation via a co-editing strategy”
- Congratulations to Ph.D. student Shannon Barry for winning the ASPB student travel award.
- Congratulations to Ph.D. student Yu Feng for winning the Society for In Vitro Biology (SIVB) student travel award.
- Nian Wang was elected to be a Senior Member of National Academy of Inventors (NAI), class of 2025
- Congratulations to Ph.D. student Yu Feng for winning the ASPB student travel award.
- Congratulations to Javier Dalmendray for winning the 2024 Marietta Wheaton Saunders Aware by The Society for In Vitro Biology (SIVB).
- Congratulations to Javier Dalmendray for winning the 3rd place award at CREC Student Research Symposium.
- Nian Wang was appointed Mr. and Mrs. J. R. (Rip) Graves Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Biotechnology on August 16, 2023
- Welcome our new Ph.D. student Zhuyuan Hu, in the Department of Microbiology and Cell Science.
- Congratulations to Tirtha Lamichhane for passing his Ph.D. defense and earning his Ph.D. degree in plant pathology on July 21, 2023.
- Congratulations to Alex Fast for passing his MS defense and earning his MS degree in plant pathology on 7/11/2023
- Congratulations to Shannon Barry for winning the James Davidson Graduate Travel Scholarship by UF
- Nian Wang received the large grant leadership award of UF/IFAS on May 25, 2023
- Congratulations to Erica Watson Carter for winning the American Phytopathological Society (APS) student travel award to attend Plant Health 2023
- Congratulations to Zhiqian Pang for starting his new job at Silvec biologics.
- Nian Wang was elected to be a Fellow of The American Phytopathological Society (APS), 2023
- Congratulations to Sheo Shankar Pandey who will leave CREC and start his own lab at IASST (Institute of Advance Studies in Science and Technology), Guwahati, India in June 2023
- Congratulations to Erica Watson Carter for winning the 2nd place student research award at UF/IFAS/CREC Research Symposium
- Congratulations to Dr. Rikky Rai. Rikky will start her own lab as an Assistant Professor in Department of Botany, University of Allahabad, India in March 2023
- Nian Wang was elected Fellow American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2022
- Erica Watson Carter won the 3rd place Student Presentation Award in the 2nd ISCHPP meeting held at Clearwater, FL on October 25- 28, 2022.
- Zhiqian Pang won the 3rd place Early Career Scientist Presentation Award in the 2nd ISCHPP meeting held at Clearwater, FL on October 25- 28, 2022.
- Nian Wang was recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher by Web of Science, 2022
- Nian Wang and colleagues from UF, University of California (UC), Riverside, UC Davis, and Texas A&M University have been awarded an ECDRE grant, which is also recognized as a Center of Excellence by USDA/NIFA 2022
- Yixiao Huang graduated with a Ph.D. degree in Plant Pathology and will work as a postdoc in a USDA ARS lab in Arkansas.
- Nian Wang received the Invention of year award by University of Florida on 10/26/2022
- The 2nd congress of ISCHPP meeting was held at Clearwater Florida on 10/25-28, 2022 with more than 110 participants.
- Nian Wang gave a seminar “Pathogen-triggered immune disease of plants”, Yale University, 10/03/2022
- Nian Wang hosted Dr. Hailing Jin, Professor & Cy Mouradick Endowed Chair at UC Riverside to give a seminar: Innovative eco-friendly disease control strategies using cross-kingdom RNAi, environmental RNAi and antimicrobial peptides, 9/19/2022
- Congratulations to Jin Xu, Jinyun Li and Xiaoen Huang for winning Early Career Scientist Award in the 7th Xanthomonas Genomics Conference (June 14-17, 2022)
- Program Members
- Publications
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Education
- 8/2001-8/2005: Ph.D. in Plant Pathology, Texas A&M University
- 9/1998-7/2001: M.S. in Plant Pathology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
- 9/1991-7/1995: B.S. in Plant Protection, Shandong Agricultural University, Shandong, China
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Academic and Professional Experience
- 8/2023-present: Mr. and Mrs. J. R. (Rip) Graves Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Biotechnology, University of Florida/IFAS
- 8/2018-present: Professor, Citrus Research and Education Center/Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, Lake Alfred, USA
- 7/2013-7/2018: Associate Professor, Citrus Research and Education Center/Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, Lake Alfred, USA
- 1/2007-6/2013: Assistant Professor, Citrus Research and Education Center/Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, Lake Alfred, USA
- 9/2005-12/2006: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
- 7/1995-8/1998: Research Assistant, Department of Plant Protection, Tobacco Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shandong, China
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Awards and Honors
- Elected to be a Senior Member of National Academy of Inventors (NAI), class of 2025
- Appointed Mr. and Mrs. J. R. (Rip) Graves Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Biotechnology University of Florida/IFAS on August 16, 2023.
- Elected Fellow American Phytopathological Society (APS) 2023
- Large Grant Leadership Award, University of Florida, 2024, 2023
- Fellow American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2022
- Highly Cited Researcher by Web of Science, 2024, 2023, 2022
- Center of Excellence, USDA NIFA, August 2022.
- Invention of the Year, University of Florida, 2022.
- Ruth Allen Award, August 2020, American Phytopathological Society
- University of Florida Term Professorship Award September 2018
- University of Florida Research Foundation Professorship Award, May 2016
- William Boright Hewitt and Maybelle Ellen Ball Hewitt Award, August 2010, American Phytopathological Society.
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Teaching
Microbial Defense/Host-Microbe Interactions. This is a course for graduate students. Principles of bacterial virulence, host defense to microbial invasion and host-microbe interactions will be examined in a context of molecular and cellular biology involving both plants and animals. Current scientific research that incorporates these principles will also be discussed.
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Service to Scientific Society
Editor
- Editor-in-Chief Phytopathology 2021-2023
- Senior Editor Phytopathology 2018-2019
- Associate Editor PLOS Pathogens 2021-present
- Senior Editor Phytopathology Research 2018-2020
- Senior Editor Plant Disease 2014-2016
- Associate Editor Phytopathology 2014-2017
- Associate Editor Plant Disease 2013 to 2014
- Editor in Chief Virulence Mechanisms of Plant-Pathogenic Bacteria Publisher: APS PRESS
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Opportunities in the Wang Lab
Post-doctoral associate and Ph.D. student positions are available in the Wang lab to work on the interactions between Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, citrus and psyllid.