Dixon Lab
Research
The Dixon laboratory takes multidisciplinary approaches to research the biosynthesis and genetic manipulation of plant natural products. We are interested in both basic and applied aspects of the molecular biology of secondary metabolism. The model systems Medicago truncatula and Arabidopsis thaliana are used for basic studies, and alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is our primary target species for application.
Much of our work centers on the use of molecular genetic and genomics approaches to identify genes that will be valuable for improvement of natural product-based plant traits. The traits targeted are ones that improve: the health of the plant; the health of ruminant animals that consume forage crops; human health (nutraceuticals and botanicals); the environment.
The lab also has a strong background in plant biochemistry and, through collaborations with chemists and structural biologists, is aiming to understand the molecular basis of the enzyme specificity that leads to the more than 200,000 different natural products collectively synthesized by plants.
Personnel
Harries, P. A. , Park, J - W., Sasaki, N., Ballard, K. D., Maule, A. J., & Nelson, R. S. (2009). Differing requirements for actin and myosin by plant viruses for sustained intercellular movement. PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences), 106 (41), 17594-17599 doi: 10.1073/pnas.0909239106.
Pang, Y., Wenger, J., Saathoff, K., Peel, G. J., Wen, J. Q., Huhman, D. V., Allen, S. N., Tang, Y., Cheng, X., Tadege, M., Ratet, P., Mysore, K. S., Sumner, L. W., Marks, M. D., & Dixon, R. A. (2009). A WD40 repeat protein from Medicago truncatula is necessary for tissue-specific anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin biosynthesis, but not for trichome development. Plant Physiology, , DOI:10.1104/pp.109.144022 .
Farag, M. A., Deavours, B., de Fatima, A., Naoumkina, M., Dixon, R. A., & Sumner, L. W. (2009). Integrated metabolite and transcript profiling identify a biosynthetic mechanism for hispidol in Medicago truncatula cell cultures. Plant Physiology, DOI:10.1104/pp.109.141481.
Zhao, J., & Dixon, R. A. (2009). MATE transporters facilitate vacuolar uptake of epicatechin 3'-O-glucoside for proanthocyanidin biosynthesis in Medicago truncatula and Arabidopsis. Plant Cell, , DOI:10.1105/tpc.109.067819.
Wang, G., & Dixon, R. A. (2009). Heterodimeric geranyl(geranyl)diphosphate synthase from hop (Humulus lupulus) and the evolution of monoterpene biosynthesis. PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences), 106 (24), 9914-9919 DOI:10.1073.pnas.0904069106.
Search PubMed- understanding lignin biosynthesis and genetic modification of lignin in alfalfa and switchgrass;
- understanding condensed tannin biosynthesis and genetic introduction of condensed tannins in alfalfa;
- functional genomics of plant trichomes;
- biosynthesis of C-glycosyl isoflavones in kudzu;
- genetic modification of galactomannan gum in guar;
- engineering resistance to cotton root rot in alfalfa; and
- grape seed polyphenols and Alzheimer's disease
- February 1-3, 2009
University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratories
- Chattanooga & Oak Ridge, TN
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Chattanooga & Oak Ridge, TN
- February 8-11, 2009
- USDA-DOE Plant Feedstock Genomics Workshop
- Bethesda, MD
Rick Dixon, Fang Chen and Rui Zhou
- Bethesda, MD
- February 13-21, 2009
- International Association of Plant BIotechnology and Metabolomics Workshop
- Napier, New Zealand
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Napier, New Zealand
- February 18-19, 2009
- AgResearch
- Palmerston North, New Zealand
Rick Dixon (Invited Speaker)
- Palmerston North, New Zealand
- February 26-28, 2009
- Purdue-UAB Botanicals Center Symposium
- West Lafayette, IN
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- West Lafayette, IN
- March 4, 2009
- 2009 Texas A&M MEPS Spring Symposium
- College Station, TX
Rick Dixon
- College Station, TX
- May 24-27, 2009
- 2nd Conference on Glucosinolates
- Elsinore, Denmark
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Elsinore, Denmark
- July 12-17, 2009
- Plant Metabolic Engineering Gordon Conference
- Waterville Valley, NH
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Waterville Valley, NH
- July 18-22, 2009
- American Society of Plant Biologists
- Honolulu, HI
Rick Dixon (invited speaker), Fang Chen, Marina Naoumkina, Yongzhen Pang and Rui Zhou
- Honolulu, HI
- August 2-7, 2009
- Plant cell Wall Gordon Conference
- Smithfield, RI
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Smithfield, RI
- September 16-19, 2009
- Italian Society of Agricultural Genetics
- Torino, Italy
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- Torino, Italy
- September 27-28, 2009
- Michigan State University
- East Lansing, MI
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- East Lansing, MI
- October 25-30, 2009
- 9th International Plant Molecular Biology Congress
- St. Louis, MO
Rick Dixon (invited speaker)
- St. Louis, MO
- Transgenic plants containing multiple disease resistance genes
C.J. Lamb, Q. Zhu, E.A. Maher, and R.A. Dixon
Issued: US patent number 5,530,187
- Methods and compositions for determining enzymatic activity and specificity of methyltransferases
J.Noel, C. Zubieta and R.A. Dixon
Issued: US patent No. 7,384,759
- Plant fatty acid amide hydrolases
K.D. Chapman, R. Shrestha and R.A. Dixon
Issued Jan 2008: US patent number 7,316,928
- Genetic manipulation of condensed tannins
R.A. Dixon, N.L. Paiva, D. Xie, S. Sharma
Issued: European patent No. 1546335 and Australian patent No. 60/392,562
- Plant isoflavonoid hydroxylases and methods of used thereof
R.A. Dixon and C.-J. Liu
US patent number 7,442,851
- Isoflavone reductase promoter
R.A. Dixon, N.L. Paiva, and A. Oommen
Issued: US patent number 5,750,399
(International patents issued in Australia, New Zealand)
- Constitutive disease resistance (CDR1) gene and methods of use thereof
Y. Xia, R.A. Dixon and C. Lamb
Issued: US patent number 6,316,697
- Regulation of anthocyanin pigment production
J. Borevitz, X. Xia, R.A. Dixon and C. Lamb
Issued: US patent number 6,573,432
- Genetic manipulation of isoflavonoids
R.A. Dixon and C.L. Steele
Issued: US patent number 7,038,113
- Isoflavonoid methylation enzyme
R.A. Dixon and X.-Z. He
Issued: US patent number 6,878,859
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Patents Pending
- Method for modifying lignin composition and increasing in vivo digestibility of forages
R.A. Dixon and D. Guo
- Flavonoid and isoflavonoid nutraceuticals
R.A. Dixon and C.-J. Liu
- Vanillin biosynthetic pathway enzyme from Vanilla planifolia
D. Havkin-Frenkel, A. Podstolski, R.A. Dixon
- Plant N-acylethanolamine binding proteins
K.D. Chapman, S. Tripathi and R.A. Dixon
- Modification of lignin biosynthesis
R.A. Dixon, M.S.S. Reddy and F. Chen
- Methods and compositions for modifying plant metabolic pathways
L. Tian and R.A. Dixon
- Plant isoflavone and isoflavanone O-methyltransferase genes
B.E. Deavours, Chang-Jun Liu and R.A. Dixon
- Production of proanthocyanidins to improve forage quality
R.A. Dixon, L. Modolo and G. Peel
- Dr. Bikram Gill
Department of Plant Pathology
Kansas State University
Lignin pathway engineering
- Dr. Peter Darby
Horticulture Reseatrch International
Wye, UK
Hop breeding for prenyl flavonoids
- Dr. Daneel Ferreira
University of Mississippi
Oxford, MS
Natural product chemistry
- Dr. Kenneth Hensley
Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
Oklahoma City, OK
Phytochemicals in neurological disease models
- Dr. Chris Lamb
John Innes Center
Norwich, UK
Molecular biology of plant disease resistance
- Dr. Greg May
National Center for Genome Resources
Santa Fe, NM
Transcriptome analysis
- Dr. David Marks
University of Minnesota
Trichome Genomics
- Dr. Joe Noel
Salk Institute Structural Biology Laboratory
San Diego, CA
Crystallography of O-methyltransferases
- Dr. John Ralph
US Forage and Dairy Research Center
Madison, WI
NMR analysis of lignin
- Dr. Lloyd Sumner
Noble Foundation
Mass spectrometry in proteomics and metabolomics
- Dr. Yuhong Tang
Noble Foundation
Genomics Core Facility
- Dr. Steven Temple
Forage Genetics International
West Salem, WI
Alfalfa biotechnology
- Dr. Xiaoqiang Wang
Noble Foundation
Crystallography of glycosyltransferases
- Dr. Zeng-Yu Wang
Noble Foundation
Transformation for cultivar development