Agricultural and Life Sciences (IFAS)
Zhao Lab
Led by Meixia Zhao · Microbiology and Cell Science
What we study
The Zhao Lab studies how genes, transposons, and epigenetic changes affect plant evolution, meiosis, and interactions with microbes using maize and soybean. They combine genetics, epigenetics, and computational methods to uncover these mechanisms.
What working here is like
- Wet lab
- Computational
- Plants
- Coding helps
- Projects
- 3
- Papers
- 5
Current projects
Genetic and epigenetic regulation of meiotic recombination between maize sexes
Comparing how male and female meiosis differ in recombination rates using maize lines.
Genetic and epigenetic effects of transposable elements on meiotic recombination
Exploring how transposons influence recombination through DNA methylation and strand breaks.
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Exploring the Influence of Nitrogen on Rhizosphere and Apoplastic Microbiomes in Maize
The study looks at how different amounts of nitrogen fertilizer change the bacteria living around maize roots and inside the plant. DNA from these areas was sequenced to see which bacteria grow more or less with higher nitrogen, aiming to improve crop health and soil care.
From the Spring 2025 UF Undergraduate Research Symposium · abstract book, p. 259
Summaries are written by AI in plain language from public symposium abstracts and may be imperfect.
Recent papers, explained
- Ac killer 1 establishes two epigenetically distinct regions associated with stable silencing of the maize Ac transposon
2026 · Frontiers in Plant Science
Studies how Ack1 silences transposons in maize across different growth stages.
- Epigenetic Rewiring Shapes Divergent Genome Plasticity in Virus Response Circuitry in Soybean
2026 · Plant Cell & Environment
Explores how viruses change soybean’s DNA methylation and resistance.
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- mop1 affects maize recombination landscapes by modulating methylation of MITEs near genes in open chromatin
2025 · Nature Communications
Finds Mop1 affects maize recombination by changing DNA methylation near genes.
- Transcriptomic and epigenetic responses shed light on soybean resistance to Phytophthora sansomeana
2024 · The Plant Genome
Looks at gene expression and DNA changes in soybeans after Phytophthora attack.
- DNA methylation analysis reveals local changes in resistant and susceptible soybean lines in response to Phytophthora sansomeana
2024 · G3 Genes Genomes Genetics
Compares DNA methylation changes in resistant and susceptible soybeans after infection.
Plain-language summaries are AI-written and reviewed by us; check the paper for details.
How to reach out
Meixia Zhao hasn't set up this page yet. You can also look them up in the UF directory (search “Meixia Zhao”).