Dr. Gwonjin Lee
Assistant Professor, Department of Biology
Office: 223 Hamblin Hall
Email: gwonjin.lee@wvstateu.edu
Phone: 304-766-3018
Github: https://github.com/GwonjinLee
Dr. Lee’s lab studies the environmental effects on local adaptation and genetic diversity in plants for agricultural applications. Our lab uses a combination of various bioinformatics analyses, including genetics, genomics, and epigenetics, along with plant physiology and molecular biology, in several crops and Arabidopsis as model systems.
RESEARCH FOCUS
Climate Factors Driving Meiotic Recombination and Genetic Diversity
We focus on how climate conditions such as temperature, photoperiod, and precipitation regulate meiotic crossovers (COs) and genetic diversity in maize and other crops. We seek to understand the comprehensive mechanisms of genetic, epigenetic, and physiological regulations for meiotic recombination in response to climate change.
Global Screening of lncRNAs Regulating Environmental Stress Responses
We identify long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) involved in gene regulation in response to abiotic and biotic stress in plants. Based on diverse transcriptomic data, we employ our bioinformatics pipeline to discover new lncRNAs and their trans– and cis-target genes, potentially followed by functional analyses.
Epigenetic Regulation in Response to Heavy Metal Stress
We seek to understand how epigenetic regulation, including DNA methylation and histone modification, is involved in heavy metal stress tolerance in Arabidopsis and other crops. We investigate inter- and intra-species variation in epigenetic modification upon heavy metal stress, ultimately aiming for phytoremediation in the West Virginia area.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCES
2024 – present                Assistant Professor, Plant Genetics and Physiology Lab, Department of Biology, West Virginia State University, Institute, WV, USA
2022 – 2024Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
2020 – 2022Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Molecular Genetics and Physiology of Plants. Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany
M.S. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Plant Molecular Physiology. Konkuk University, Seoul, South Korea
B.S.                                           Biological Science. Konkuk University, Seoul, South Korea
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
‪Gwonjin Lee – ‪Google Scholar
2024                      DiBiase C.N., Cheng X., Lee G., Moore R.C., McCoy A.G., Chilvers M.I., Sun L., Wang D., Lin F., Zhao M. DNA methylation analysis reveals local changes in resistant and susceptible soybean lines in response to Phytophthora sansomeana. G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics jkae191. https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkae191
2024                      Lee G., DiBiase C.N., Liu B., Li T., McCoy A.G., Chilvers M.I., Sun L., Wang D., Lin F., Zhao M. Transcriptomic and epigenetic responses shed light on soybean resistance to Phytophthora sansomeana. The Plant Genome e20487. https://doi.org/10.1002/tpg2.20487
2024                      Lee G., Sanderson B.J., Ellis T.J., Dilkes B.P., McKay J.K., Ågren J., Oakley C.G. A large-effect fitness trade-off across environments is explained by a single mutation affecting cold acclimation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 121(6): e2317461121. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2317461121
2021                      Lee G., Ahmadi H., Quintana J., Syllwasschy L., Janina N., Preite V., Anderson J. E., Pietzenuk B., Krämer U. Constitutively enhanced genome integrity maintenance and direct stress mitigation characterize transcriptome of extreme stress-adapted Arabidopsis halleri. The Plant Journal 108: 896-911. https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.15544
2021                      Rojas-Gutierrez J.D., Lee G., Sanderson B.J., Jameel M.I., Oakley C.G. Genome-wide association analysis of freezing tolerance in soft red winter wheat. Crop Science 62:637– 647. https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.20682
2017                      Stein R.J., Höreth S., de Melo J.R.F., Syllwasschy L., Lee G., Garbin M.L., Clemens S., Krämer U. Relationships between soil and leaf mineral composition are element-specific, environment dependent and geographically structured in the emerging model Arabidopsis halleri. New Phytologist 213(3):12
