2026.9–present, Professor, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences

2020.12–2026.8, Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Science and Technology Austria

2018.7–2020.6, Postdoctoral Fellow, Peking University

2013.9–2018.7, Ph.D., Peking University

2009.9–2013.7, B.Sc., Nanjing Agricultural University

Dr. Ge has published multiple research articles and reviews as first or co-first author in international journals such as Science (two papers), Current Biology, Plant Biotechnology Journal, Trends in Plant Science, and New Phytologist. His publications have received over 1,000 citations. He also serves as a reviewer for journals including New Phytologist, Plant Physiology, and Plant Reproduction.

Root systems are essential organs for plant anchorage, water and nutrient uptake, sensing the soil environment, and stress adaptation. Their three-dimensional architecture directly affects crop nutrient use efficiency, stress tolerance, yield stability, and soil carbon sequestration potential. Nevertheless, how plant roots perceive and integrate complex environmental signals to determine growth direction and architecture remains a fundamental question in plant developmental biology and crop improvement.

Our group uses Arabidopsis thaliana as the primary model plant and focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying root tropic growth and the establishment of three-dimensional root system architecture. We aim to dissect cell-surface signal perception and transduction mediated by plant hormones and small peptides during this process. We also conduct space-ground collaborative research and extend our studies to major crops such as soybean and maize, providing theoretical foundations and breeding resources for designing ideal root ideotypes. Specific research directions include:

1. Root gravitropic growth and cell fate determination;

2. Integration of multiple environmental signals and root architecture plasticity;

3. Root gravity perception and tropic growth under space microgravity conditions;

4. Genetic basis and design breeding of crop root architecture.

1. Zalabák, D., Králová, M., Kubalová, I., Hajný, J., Kubiasová, K., Vagaská, K., Ge, Z., Gallei, M., Semerádová, H., Kuchařová, A., et al. (2024). A decoy receptor derived from alternative splicing fine-tunes cytokinin signaling in Arabidopsis. Mol. Plant 17, 1850-1865.

2. Zhou, L-Z^#., Wang, L^#., Chen, X^#., Ge, Z., Mergner, J., Li, X., Küster, B., Längst, G., Qu, L-J. and Dresselhaus, T. (2023). The RALF signaling pathway regulates cell wall integrity during pollen tube growth in maize. Plant Cell koad324.

3. Zhong, S^#., Li, L^#., Wang, Z^#., Ge, Z^#., Li, Q^#., Bleckmann, A., Wang, A., Song, Z., Shi, Y., Liu, T., et al. (2022). RALF peptide signaling controls the polytubey block in Arabidopsis. Science 375, 290-296.

4. Ge, Z^#., Dresselhaus T., and Qu, L-J. (2019). How CrRLK1L receptor complexes perceive RALF signals. Trends Plant Sci. 24, 978-981.

5. Ge, Z^#., Cheung, A.Y., and Qu, L-J. (2019). Pollen tube integrity regulation in flowering plants: insights from molecular assemblies on the pollen tube surface. New Phytol. 222, 687-693.

6. Ge, Z^#., Zhao, Y^#., Liu, M-C., Zhou, L-Z., Wang, L., Zhong, S., Hou, S., Jiang, J., Liu, T., Huang, Q., et al. (2019). LLG2/3 are co-receptors in BUPS/ANX-RALF signaling to regulate Arabidopsis pollen tube integrity. Curr. Biol. 29, 3256-3265.

7. Ge, Z^#., Zheng, L^#., Zhao, Y., Jiang, J., Zhang, E.J., Liu, T., Gu, H., and Qu, L-J. (2019). Engineered xCas9 and SpCas9-NG variants broaden PAM recognition sites to generate mutations in Arabidopsis plants. Plant Biotechnol. J. 17, 1865-1867.

8. Zhong, S^#., Liu, M^#., Wang, Z^#., Huang, Q^#., Hou, S., Xu, Y-C., Ge, Z., Song, Z., Huang, J., Qiu, X., et al. (2019). Cysteine-rich peptides promote interspecific genetic isolation in Arabidopsis. Science 364, eaau9564.

9. Ge, Z^#., Bergonci, T^#., Zhao, Y., Zou, Y., Du, S., Liu, M., Luo, X., Ruan, H., Garcia-Valencia, L., Zhong, S., et al. (2017). Arabidopsis pollen tube integrity and sperm release are regulated by RALF-mediated signaling. Science 358, 1596-1599.

10. Zhu, M., Dai, X., Guo, W., Ge, Z., Yang, M., Wang, H., and Wang, Y.P. (2017). Manipulating the bacterial cell cycle and cell size by titrating the expression of ribonucleotide reductase. MBio 8, e01741-17.