About

Mary Beth Mudgett is the Senior Associate Dean for the Natural Sciences in the School of Humanities & Sciences at Stanford University and the Susan B. Ford Professor in the Department of Biology. She received her doctorate in biochemistry from the University of California, Los Angeles, and has been a professor in Stanford's Department of Biology since 2002. Her research group studies plant-pathogen interactions, focusing on the biochemical mechanisms that pathogens use to manipulate the plant immune system, leading to disease outbreaks. Mudgett has also served as president of the International Society for Plant-Microbe Interactions, where she launched virtual symposia and platforms to facilitate global networking and promote inclusivity among diverse stakeholders. In addition to her research, Mudgett is passionate about teaching and mentorship. She has initiated efforts within biology to accommodate different learning styles and improve the student experience, including reshaping introductory science and math courses to better support students with varying levels of preparation for STEM majors. She partners on initiatives to provide teaching mentorship support for junior faculty and their mentors, aiming to enhance best practices across curricula. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she co-chaired Stanford’s Academic Continuity Group, helping the university navigate online learning challenges and develop infrastructure for safe in-person instruction. She also directed the Dean’s Fellows Program, offering teaching and research opportunities for graduate students facing a challenging job market. In her current role, she is dedicated to advancing research, teaching, and mentoring within the natural sciences and broader communities.

Research topics

• Botany
• Biochemistry
• Genetics
• Biology

Selected publications

• Supplementary document for Fast Wide-field Light Sheet Electro-optic FLIM - 7791541.pdf

  Figshare · 2026-04-14

  articleOpen access

  Supplemental information

  PublisherDOI

• Supplementary document for Fast Wide-field Light Sheet Electro-optic FLIM - 7791541.pdf

  Figshare · 2026-04-14

  articleOpen access

  Supplemental information

  PublisherDOI

• Fast wide-field light sheet electro-optic FLIM

  Optics Express · 2026-02-03

  preprintOpen access

  We demonstrate volumetric fluorescence lifetime microscopy (FLIM) using the electro-optic FLIM technique. Images acquired in a selective plane illumination microscope are gated using a Pockels cell driven at 80 MHz, enabling light sheet electro-optic FLIM (LS-EO-FLIM) acquisition with up to 800 μ m field of view. Volume acquisitions are demonstrated on fluorescent bead mixtures and in live Arabidopsis thaliana root samples using both genetically encoded fluorescent proteins and endogenous autofluorescence.

  PublisherDOI

• Fast wide-field light sheet electro-optic FLIM

  Optics Express · 2026-02-03

  articleOpen access

  We demonstrate volumetric fluorescence lifetime microscopy (FLIM) using the electro-optic FLIM technique. Images acquired in a selective plane illumination microscope are gated using a Pockels cell driven at 80 MHz, enabling light sheet electro-optic FLIM (LS-EO-FLIM) acquisition with up to 800 μ m field of view. Volume acquisitions are demonstrated on fluorescent bead mixtures and in live Arabidopsis thaliana root samples using both genetically encoded fluorescent proteins and endogenous autofluorescence.

  PublisherDOI

• Engineering Tumor-Targeted Lentiviral Particles to Deliver CAR Antigens and Lethality Inducing Payloads

  Stanford Digital Repository · 2026-05-01

  articleOpen access

  Despite advancements in cancer treatments, solid tumors remain a major challenge for CAR T cell therapy due to their immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and heterogeneous antigen expression that enable immune evasion. Existing CAR T cells exhibit limited clinical efficacy in solid tumors, highlighting the need for complementary therapeutic strategies that approach tumor control from multiple angles. Previous work has focused on combining immune checkpoint blockade and oncolytic viruses with CAR T; however, advances in the field of lentiviral delivery platforms have opened new avenues to aid in the elimination of tumor cells. Thus, I developed tumor-targeted lentiviral particles (TTLVPs) by adapting the Mackall Lab's Programmable Antigen-Mediated Cellular Knock-in of T cells (PACK-IT) platform, incorporating tumor antigen-specific scFvs to redirect viral tropism toward tumor cells, with the goal of selectively delivering lethality-inducing and antigen-modifying payloads to the tumor. To evaluate TTLVPs, I (1) identified suitable target antigens by assessing transduction efficiency via flow cytometry, (2) tested selected TTLVPs on solid and liquid tumor models expressing the target antigen, and (3) assessed the potential of delivering lethality-inducing and antigen-modifying payloads in combination with CAR T via coculture assays. Three TTLVPs targeting human B7-H3, cross-reactive B7-H3, and GD2 were successfully engineered and demonstrated the ability to transduce both liquid and solid tumor models, with higher transduction efficiency observed in solid tumors. Delivery of truncated CD19 to neuroblastoma cells via the GD2 TTLVP reshaped tumor targetability, enabling efficient CAR T cell killing and demonstrating that GD2-positive tumors can be made susceptible to non-tonically signaling robust CAR Ts like the CD19 CAR. The GD2 TTLVP platform was also explored as a strategy to address tumor heterogeneity through delivery of GD2 synthesis enzymes, revealing that baseline antigen density is a key determinant of payload delivery efficiency. Delivery of lethality-inducing genetic payloads was also explored, with preliminary data suggesting that Caspase 3 modestly enhances CAR T cell efficacy. Together, these findings underscore the need for versatile, multi-pronged therapeutic approaches capable of addressing tumor resistance and immune escape, and position tumor-targeted lentiviral delivery platforms as a promising novel strategy to meet this challenge.

  PublisherDOI

• Supplementary document for Fast Wide-field Light Sheet Electro-optic FLIM - 7791541.pdf

  Figshare · 2026-04-14

  articleOpen access

  Supplemental information

  PublisherDOI

• Linking sugar sensing to immunity in plants via O-glycosylation

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2026-05-07

  articleOpen access

  Summary Interaction with microbes can reprogram metabolism and alter nutrient availability in plant cells. How metabolic cues modulate immune responses remains unknown. Here, we show that sugar-sensing O -glycosylation of immune-signaling kinases mediates metabolic regulation of immunity. Under sugar-replete conditions, the MAP kinase kinases (MKK4 and MKK5), key components of pattern-triggered immunity (PTI), are glycosylated by O -GlcNAc and O -fucose in their activation loops and thus cannot be activated by upstream kinases, thereby restricting PTI. Pathogen infection or sugar starvation reduces O -glycosylation of MKK4/5 and enhances immune signaling; these effects are reversed by GDP-fucose treatment, demonstrating that reduced sugar availability decreases O -fucosylation and enhances immune signaling in infected cells. Chemical inhibition of O -fucosylation enhances immunity and pathogen resistance in both Arabidopsis and tomato. Our findings establish O -glycosylation of MKKs as a metabolic rheostat that fine-tunes immune responses according to sugar availability during plant-microbe interactions, providing a new strategy for improving crop health.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Transcriptome analysis reveals role of transcription factor WRKY70 in early <i>N-</i>hydroxy-pipecolic acid signaling

  PLANT PHYSIOLOGY · 2024-10-15 · 8 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  N-Hydroxy-pipecolic acid (NHP) is a mobile metabolite essential for inducing and amplifying systemic acquired resistance (SAR) following a pathogen attack. Early phases of NHP signaling leading to immunity have remained elusive. Here, we report the early transcriptional changes mediated by NHP and the role salicylic acid (SA) plays during this response in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). We show that distinct waves of expression within minutes to hours of NHP treatment include increased expression of WRKY transcription factor genes as the primary transcriptional response, followed by the induction of WRKY-regulated defense genes as the secondary response. Most genes induced by NHP within minutes were SA dependent, whereas those induced within hours were SA independent. These data suggest that NHP induces the primary transcriptional response under basal levels of SA and that new SA biosynthesis via ISOCHORISMATE SYNTHASE 1/SA-INDUCTION DEFICIENT 2 is dispensable for inducing the secondary transcriptional response. We demonstrate that WRKY70 is required for the induced expression of a set of genes defining some of the secondary transcriptional response, SAR protection, and NHP-dependent enhancement of reactive oxygen species production in response to flagellin treatment. Our study highlights the key genes and pathways defining early NHP responses and the role of WRKY70 in regulating NHP-dependent transcription.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Multiple Acquisitions of XopJ2 Effectors in Populations of <i>Xanthomonas perforans</i>

  Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions · 2024-08-05 · 6 citations

  articleOpen access

  Type III effectors (T3Es) are major determinants of Xanthomonas virulence and targets for resistance breeding. XopJ2 (synonym AvrBsT) is a highly conserved YopJ-family T3E acquired by X. perforans, the pathogen responsible for bacterial spot disease of tomato. In this study, we characterized a new variant (XopJ2b) of XopJ2, which is predicted to have a similar three-dimensional (3D) structure as the canonical XopJ2 (XopJ2a) despite sharing only 70% sequence identity. XopJ2b carries an acetyltransferase domain and the critical residues required for its activity, and the positions of these residues are predicted to be conserved in the 3D structure of the proteins. We demonstrated that XopJ2b is a functional T3E and triggers a hypersensitive response (HR) when translocated into pepper cells. Like XopJ2a, XopJ2b triggers HR in Arabidopsis that is suppressed by the deacetylase, SOBER1. We found xopJ2b in genome sequences of X. euvesicatoria, X. citri, X. guizotiae, and X. vasicola strains, suggesting widespread horizontal transfer. In X. perforans, xopJ2b was present in strains collected in North America, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Europe, whereas xopJ2a had a narrower geographic distribution. This study expands the Xanthomonas T3E repertoire, demonstrates functional conservation in T3E evolution, and further supports the importance of XopJ2 in X. perforans fitness on tomato. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

  PublisherDOI

• Transcriptome analysis reveals role for WRKY70 in early <i>N-</i> hydroxy-pipecolic acid signaling

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2024-04-28 · 1 citations

  preprintOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Abstract N -hydroxy-pipecolic acid (NHP) is a mobile metabolite essential for inducing and amplifying systemic acquired resistance (SAR) following pathogen attack. Early phases of NHP signaling leading to immunity have remained elusive. Here we report the early transcriptional changes mediated by NHP and the role salicylic acid (SA) plays during this response. We show that distinct waves of expression within minutes to hours of NHP treatment include increased expression of WRKY transcription factors as the primary transcriptional response, followed by the induction of WRKY-regulated defense genes as the secondary response. The majority of genes induced by NHP within minutes were SA-dependent, whereas those induced within hours were SA-independent. These data suggest that NHP induces the primary transcriptional response in a low SA environment and new SA biosynthesis is dispensable for induction of the secondary transcriptional response. We demonstrate that WRKY70 is required for the induced expression of a set of genes defining some of the secondary transcriptional response, SAR protection, and NHP-dependent enhancement of ROS production in response to flagellin treatment. Taken together, our study highlights the key genes and pathways defining early NHP responses and a role for WRKY70 in the regulation of NHP-dependent transcription.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Molecular mechanisms that boost systemic immunity in plants

  NSF · $975k · 2021–2025

• NIH Grant F32GM018414

  NIH · $98k

• Role of Tomato bHLH Transcription Factors in Development and Immunity

  NSF · $878k · 2016–2020

• NIH Grant R01GM068886

  NIH · $2.6M · 2015

• Characterization of XopN, a Heat-Repeat TTSS Effector Required for Xanthomonas Pathogenesis in Tomato

  NSF · $506k · 2008–2013

Frequent coauthors

• Jung‐Gun Kim

  Stanford University

  78 shared

• Gary A. Splitter

  University of Wisconsin–Madison

  49 shared

• Gastón Paris

  Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas

  49 shared

• Diego J. Comerci

  National University of General San Martín

  49 shared

• Gireesh Rajashekara

  The Ohio State University

  49 shared

• Trevor E. Swartz

  49 shared

• Rodolfo A. Ugalde

  49 shared

• Marcus A. Frederickson

  University of California, Santa Cruz

  49 shared

Education

• PhD / Biochemistry, Chemistry and Biochemistry

  University of California, Los Angeles

  2004

• BA / Biochemistry, Biology

  Ithaca College

  1989

Awards & honors

• Stanford Friends University Fellow in Undergraduate Educatio…