Georg Jander

About

Georg Jander is an adjunct professor at the School of Integrative Plant Science, Plant Biology Section, and a professor at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI). His research employs genetic and biochemical approaches to study plant-insect interactions and plant amino acid metabolism, primarily using Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system. His work focuses on understanding how plants interact with insects and how amino acids are metabolized within plants, contributing to the broader knowledge of plant biology and ecology. He holds a doctorate from Harvard Medical School obtained in 1995 and a Bachelor of Science from Washington University in 1987. His research has led to developments such as a soft robotic device that can inject leaves with sensors and genetic material, and his studies on plant biosynthesis pathways that could inform the development of new drugs. Jander's research is published and accessible through Google Scholar, and he is actively involved in advancing plant science through his work at BTI and his academic collaborations.

Research topics

• Biology
• Genetics
• Botany
• Ecology
• Biochemistry
• Agronomy
• Evolutionary biology
• Biotechnology

Selected publications

• Molecular ecology of plant volatiles in interactions with insect herbivores

  Journal of Experimental Botany · 2021 · 169 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding

  Plant-derived volatile organic compounds (VOCs) play pivotal roles in interactions with insect herbivores. Individual VOCs can be directly toxic or deterrent, serve as signal molecules to attract natural enemies, and/or be perceived by distal plant tissues as a priming signal to prepare for expected herbivory. Environmental conditions, as well as the specific plant-insect interaction being investigated, strongly influence the observed functions of VOC blends. The complexity of plant-insect chemi…

  DOI

• Global patterns in genomic diversity underpinning the evolution of insecticide resistance in the aphid crop pest Myzus persicae

  Communications Biology · 2021 · 115 citations

  The aphid Myzus persicae is a destructive agricultural pest that displays an exceptional ability to develop resistance to both natural and synthetic insecticides. To investigate the evolution of resistance in this species we generated a chromosome-scale genome assembly and living panel of >110 fully sequenced globally sampled clonal lines. Our analyses reveal a remarkable diversity of resistance mutations segregating in global populations of M. persicae. We show that the emergence and spread of…

  DOI

• Indole‐3‐glycerolphosphate synthase, a branchpoint for the biosynthesis of tryptophan, indole, and benzoxazinoids in maize

  The Plant Journal · 2021 · 55 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding

  The maize (Zea mays) genome encodes three indole-3-glycerolphosphate synthase enzymes (IGPS1, 2, and 3) catalyzing the conversion of 1-(2-carboxyphenylamino)-l-deoxyribulose-5-phosphate to indole-3-glycerolphosphate. Three further maize enzymes (BX1, benzoxazinoneless 1; TSA, tryptophan synthase alpha subunit; and IGL, indole glycerolphosphate lyase) convert indole-3-glycerolphosphate to indole, which is released as a volatile defense signaling compound and also serves as a precursor for the bio…

  DOI

• Acylsugars protect Nicotiana benthamiana against insect herbivory and desiccation

  Plant Molecular Biology · 2021 · 49 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  DOI

• Cardiac glycosides protect wormseed wallflower ( <i>Erysimum cheiranthoides</i> ) against some, but not all, glucosinolate‐adapted herbivores

  New Phytologist · 2024-01-17 · 29 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  The chemical arms race between plants and insects is foundational to the generation and maintenance of biological diversity. We asked how the evolution of a novel defensive compound in an already well-defended plant lineage impacts interactions with diverse herbivores. Erysimum cheiranthoides (Brassicaceae), which produces both ancestral glucosinolates and novel cardiac glycosides, served as a model. We analyzed gene expression to identify cardiac glycoside biosynthetic enzymes in E. cheiranthoi…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• IOS EDGE: Development of genetic and genomic resources for milkweed, Asclepias syriaca and Asclepias curassavica

  NSF · $1.0M · 2017–2021

• A Gas Chromatograph - Mass Spectrometer for Measurement of Plant Metabolites

  NSF · $152k · 2005–2008

• Manipulation of plant defenses by an insect-vectored virus

  NSF · $381k · 2012–2015

Frequent coauthors

• Shaoqun Zhou

  Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen

  61 shared

• Zhangjun Fei

  Cornell University

  58 shared

• Martin de Vos

  KeyGene (Netherlands)

  54 shared

• Susan R. Strickler

  Center for Plant Conservation

  51 shared

• Mahdieh Mirzaei

  Ithaca College

  49 shared

• Honglin Feng

  Ithaca College

  49 shared

• Vered Tzin

  Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

  43 shared

• Kevin R. Ahern

  Cornell University

  39 shared

Similar researchers at Cornell University

• Edward Bucklerh-182
• Jean-Luc Janninkh-93
• Lukas Muellerh-81