Our research group employs structural biology, biochemistry, physiological and genetic approaches to investigate the structural mechanisms and molecular design of proteins involved in transmembrane transport and signaling processes in plants. We aim to uncover the fundamental principles governing plant life activities and to provide targets and molecular strategies for crop improvement and design breeding. Significant advances have been made in structural and mechanistic understanding of plant cross-membrane transport (nutrient/hormone transport, photosynthetic efficiency via CCM/stomatal regulation) and signaling (blue-light receptor).

1. Molecular Mechanisms of Plant Nutrient and Hormone Transport

This study aims to unveil the molecular mechanisms underlying the cross-membrane transport and regulation of plant nutrients and hormones mediated by membrane transporters. Combining cryo-EM structure determination and functional analyses, we elucidated the substrate recognition, transport, and regulatory mechanisms of plant inorganic phosphate (Pi) transporters: PHO1, responsible for root-to-shoot Pi translocation, and SPDT, mediating Pi distribution within the shoot (Nat. Plants, 2025a; Sci. Adv., 2025a). We determined the three-dimensional structures of the plant hormone (ABA/JA) ABC transporters ABCG25/16 in distinct states, which not only elucidated molecular mechanisms/process underlying substrate recognition and cross-membrane transport, but also significantly enriched our mechanistic understanding of the ABC transporter family (Nat. Plants, 2023 & 2024). We also conducted systematic structural and functional studies on ECF transporters, a unique class of ABC transporters prevalent in bacteria and plants, uncovering their structures and distinct mechanisms for transporting nutrients like vitamin B (Cell Res., 2017; Nat. Commun., 2015; PNAS, 2014; Nature, 2013).

2. Membrane Transporters Regulating Plant Photosynthetic Efficiency: Mechanisms and Design

This work investigates key membrane transporters critical for the CO₂ concentrating mechanism (CCM) and stomatal movement processes that regulate photosynthetic efficiency. Major findings include:1) Structure and Mechanism of CCM Transporters: Determination of three-dimensional structures and elucidation of molecular mechanisms for multiple bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻, a CO₂ carrier) transporters involved in the CCM of algae (Chlamydomonas) and cyanobacteria (Nat. Plants, 2019 & 2026; PNAS, 2021). 2) Structure and Regulation of Stomatal Transporters/Channels: Revealing the structures and regulatory mechanisms for ion channels and transporters controlling stomatal movement, including the calcium channel CNGC (Nat. Plants, 2025b), the potassium channel GORK (Nat. Commun., 2025), the inorganic phosphate transporter PHO1 (Nat. Plants, 2025a), and the nitrate transporter ClCa (Nat. Commun., 2023). This work reveals regulatory mechanisms during photosynthesis and provides new targets and molecular strategies for enhancing photosynthetic efficiency in C3 plants.

3. Photo signaling mechanism of Plant Blue Light Receptor Cryptochrome

Plants utilize photoreceptors like cryptochrome (CRY) to sense light and regulate growth and environmental adaptation. While CRY's physiological roles have been studied for decades, the molecular mechanisms of its light-induced activation and assembly into distinct photosignaling complexes remained elusive. Our research elucidated the mechanism of blue light-induced CRY activation by determining three-dimensional structures of plant CRY proteins from multiple species in their light-activated states, combined with physiological and biochemical analyses (Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol., 2020). Moving forward, we reconstituted CRY photosignaling complexes with various downstream effectors in vitro and resolved their atomic-resolution structures. These structures reveal how activated CRY selectively binds different effector proteins to form specific photosignaling complexes, thereby regulating distinct physiological processes (Sci Adv., 2025b & c; Plant Commun., 2023). In the future, we aim to combine structure-based molecular design of CRY with precise gene-editing technologies to manipulate CRY-regulated physiological processes in plants or crops.