Referees and editorial board members for international journal

Trends in Plant Science, Referees for Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, PNAS, Nature Communications, ISME J, Mole Biol Evol, PLoS Genetics, New Phytologist, Plant Biotechnology J, ACS Synth Biol, Mol Plant-Microbe Interact, J Bacteriol, Appl Environ Microbiol, Microbial Biotechnology, J Molecular Evolution, Genome Biol Evol, BMC Genomics, Genes, BMC Microbiol, Gene, FEMS Microbiology Ecology, FEMS Microbiol Lett, Arch Microbiol, J Environ Sci, Int J Syst Evol Microbiol, Front Microbiol, Front Plant Sci, Plant Science, J Agricultural and Food Chemistry, Applied Soil Ecology, J Soils and Sediments, J Arid Environments, Science China Life Sciences, Scientific Reports, PLoS One.

Editorial board member: Journal of Bacteriology, Microbial Biotechnology, Journal of Systemtics and Evolution

Guest editors: Frontiers in Plant Science, Frontiers in Microbiology, Microorganisms.

Research activities

I. Ecology and evolution of rhizobia.

II. Molecular interactions between rhizobia and legumes.

III. Synthetic biology based on rhizobium-legume symbioses.

Publications (Publication list on ResearchGate)

(Corresponding author or first author)

(H-index = 33)

2024

A36. Zhang P#, Zhang B#, Ji Y, Jiao J, Zhang Z*, Tian CF* (2024). Cofitness network connectivity determines a fuzzy essential zone in open bacterial pangenome. mLife 3: 277–290.

A35. Wang X*, Yang Y, Nan Q, Guo J-W, Tan Z, Shao X, Tian C* (2024). Barley farmland harbors a highly homogeneous soil bacterial community compared to wild ecosystems in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. Front. Microbiol. 15: 1418161.

A34. Li Y*, Guo T, Sun L, Wang ET, Young JPW, Tian CF*. (2024). Phylogenomic analyses and reclassification of the Mesorhizobium complex : proposal for 9 novel genera and reclassification of 15 species. BMC Genomics 25: 419.

A33. Sinharoy S*, Tian C-F*, Montiel J*. 2024. Editorial: Plant-rhizobia symbiosis and nitrogen fixation in legumes. Front. Plant Sci. 15:1392006. (5Y-IF = 6.8) (Editoriol)

2023

A32. Liu S, Jiao J, Tian CF*. 2023. Adaptive evolution of rhizobial symbiosis beyond horizontal gene transfer: from genome innovation to regulation reconstruction. Genes. 14: 274 (Invited Review)

A31. Ji YY, Zhang B, Zhang P, Chen LC, Si YW, Wan XY, Li C, Wang RH, Tian Y, Zhang Z, Tian CF*. 2023. Rhizobial migration toward roots mediated by FadL-ExoFQP modulation of extracellular long-chain AHLs. ISME J. 17: 417-431

A30. Guo H, Shi WT, Zhang B, Xu YH, Jiao J, Tian CF*. 2023. Intracellular common gardens reveal niche differentiation in transposable element community during bacterial adaptive evolution. ISME J. 17: 297-308

2022

A29. Shi WT, Zhang B, Li ML, Liu KH, Jiao J*, Tian CF*. 2022. The convergent xenogeneic silencer MucR predisposes α-proteobacteria to integrate AT-rich symbiosis genes. Nucleic Acids Research. 50: 8580-8598

A28. Feng XY, Tian Y, Cui WJ, Li YZ, Wang D, Liu Y, Jiao J, Chen WX, Tian CF*. 2022. The PTS^Ntr-KdpDE-KdpFABC pathway contributes to low potassium stress adaptation and competitive nodulation of Sinorhizobium fredii. mBio. 13: e03721-21

A27. Liu KH, Zhang B, Yang BS, Shi WT, Li YF, Wang Y, Zhang P, Jiao J*, Tian CF*. 2022. Rhizobiales-specific RirA represses a naturally "synthetic" foreign siderophore gene cluster to maintain Sinorhizobium-legume mutualism. mBio. 13: e02900-21 

A26. Jiao J#, Zhang B#, Li ML, Zhang Z*, Tian CF*. 2022. The zinc-finger bearing xenogeneic silencer MucR in α-proteobacteria balances adaptation and regulatory integrity. ISME J. 16: 738-749

2021

A25. Li ML, Jiao J, Zhang B, Shi WT, Yu WH, Tian CF*. 2021. Global transcriptional repression of diguanylate cyclases by MucR1 is essential for Sinorhizobium-soybean symbiosis. mBio. 12: e01192-21 (Correction)

A24. Cui WJ#, Zhang B#, Zhao R, Liu LX, Jiao J, Zhang Z*, Tian CF*. 2021. Lineage-specific rewiring of core pathways predating innovation of legume nodules shapes symbiotic efficiency. mSystems.6(2):e01299-20

2020

A23. Jiao J, Tian CF*. 2020. Ancestral zinc-finger bearing protein MucR in alpha-proteobacteria : A novel xenogeneic silencer ? Comput. Struct. Biotechnol. J. 18: 3623-31

A22. Zhang P, Zhang B, Jiao J, Dai SQ, Chen WX, Tian CF*. 2020. Modulation of symbiotic compatibility by rhizobial zinc starvation machinery. mBio. 11: e03193-19

2019

A21. Sun YW, Li Y, Hu Y, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2019. Coordinated regulation of the size and number of polyhydroxybutyrate granules by core and accessory phasins in the facultative microsymbiont Sinorhizobium fredii NGR234. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 85(19):e00717-19（Spotlight article）

2018

A20. Jiao J#, Ni M#, Zhang B, Zhang Z, Young JPW, Chan TF, Chen WX, Lam HM*, Tian CF＊.  2018. Coordinated regulation of core and accessory genes in the multipartite genome of Sinorhizobium fredii. PLoS Genetics.14(5): e1007428

A19. Hu Y, Jiao J, Liu LX, Sun YW, Chen WF, Sui XH, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2018. Evidence for phosphate starvation of rhizobia without terminal differentiation in legume nodules. Mol. Plant-Microbe Interact. 31: 1060-1068

A18.Wang XL, Cui WJ, Feng XY, Zhong ZM, Li Y, Chen WX, Chen WF, Shao XM＊, Tian CF＊. 2018. Rhizobia inhabiting nodules and rhizosphere soils of alfalfa : A strong selection of facultative microsymbionts. Soil Biol. Biochem. 116:340–350.

A17. Zhao R#, Liu LX#, Zhang YZ, Jiao J, Cui WJ, Zhang B, Wang XL, Li ML, Chen Y, Xiong ZQ, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2018. Adaptive evolution of rhizobial symbiotic compatibility mediated by co-evolved insertion sequences. ISME J. 12:101–111.

2017

A16. Liu LX, Li QQ, Zhang YZ, Hu Y, Jiao J, Guo HJ, Zhang XX, Zhang B, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2017. The nitrate-reduction gene cluster components exert lineage-dependent contributions to optimization of Sinorhizobium symbiosis with soybeans. Environ. Microbiol. 19:4926–4938 

A15. Xiong HY, Zhang XX, Guo HJ, Ji YY, Li Y, Wang XL, Zhao W, Mo FY, Cheng CJ, Yang T, Zong X, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2017. The epidemicity of facultative microsymbionts in faba bean rhizosphere soils. Soil Biol. Biochem. 115: 243–252

A14. Zhang XX#, Guo HJ#, Jiao J, Zhang P, Xiong HY, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2017. Pyrosequencing of rpoB uncovers a significant biogeographical pattern of rhizobial species in soybean rhizosphere. J. Biogeogr. 44:1491–1499.

2016

A13. Jiao J#, Wu LJ#, Zhang B, Hu Y, Li Y, Zhang XX, Guo HJ, Liu LX, Chen WX, Zhang Z, Tian CF＊. 2016. MucR is required for transcriptional activation of conserved ion transporters to support nitrogen fixation of Sinorhizobium fredii in soybean nodules. Mol. Plant-Microbe Interact. 29:352–361.

A12. Li YZ#, Wang D#, Feng XY, Jiao J, Chen WX, Tian CF＊. 2016. Genetic analysis reveals the essential role of nitrogen phosphotransferase system components in Sinorhizobium fredii CCBAU 45436 symbioses with soybean and pigeonpea plants. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 82:1305–1315.（Spotlight article）

A11. Wang D#, Wang YC#, Wu LJ, Liu JX, Zhang P, Jiao J, Yan H, Liu T, Tian CF＊, Chen WX. 2016. Construction and pilot screening of a signature-tagged mutant library of Sinorhizobium fredii. Arch. Microbiol. 198:91–99.

2015

A10. Liu T, Tian CF＊, Chen WX. 2015. Site-specific Ser/Thr/Tyr phosphoproteome of Sinorhizobium meliloti at stationary phase. PLoS One 10:e0139143.

2014

A9. Guo HJ, Wang ET, Zhang XX, Li QQ, Zhang YM, Tian CF＊, Chen WX. 2014. Replicon-dependent differentiation of symbiosis-related genes in Sinorhizobiumnodulating Glycine max. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 80:1245–1255.

A8. Zhang XX, Guo HJ, Wang R, Sui XH, Zhang YM, Wang ET, Tian CF＊, Chen WX. 2014. Genetic divergence of Bradyrhizobium nodulating soybeans as revealed by multilocus sequence analysis of genes inside and outside the symbiosis island. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 80:3181–3190.

2013

A7. Li Y, Tian CF＊, Chen WF, Wang L, Sui XH, Chen WX. 2013. High-resolution transcriptomic analyses of Sinorhizobium sp. NGR234 bacteroids in determinate nodules of Vigna unguiculata and indeterminate nodules of Leucaena leucocephala. PLoS One 8:e70531.

2012

A6. Tian CF＊＃, Zhou YJ＃, Zhang YM＃, Li QQ＃, Zhang YZ＃, Li DF, Wang S, Wang J, Gilbert LB, Li YR＊, Chen WX. 2012. Comparative genomics of rhizobia nodulating soybean suggests extensive recruitment of lineage-specific genes in adaptations. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 109:8629–8634.

A5. Tian CF＃, Garnerone A-M＃, Mathieu-Demazière C, Masson-Boivin C, Batut J＊. 2012. Plant-activated bacterial receptor adenylate cyclases modulate epidermal infection in the Sinorhizobium meliloti-Medicago symbiosis. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 109:6751–6756.

A4. Zhang YM, Tian CF＊, Sui XH, Chen WF, Chen WX. 2012. Robust markers reflecting phylogeny and taxonomy of rhizobia. PLoS One 7:e44936.

2010

A3. Tian CF, Young JPW, Wang ET, Tamimi SM, Chen WX, Chen WX＊. 2010. Population mixing of Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae nodulating Vicia faba: the role of recombination and lateral gene transfer. FEMS Microbiol. Ecol. 73: 563–76.

2008

A2. Tian CF, Wang ET, Wu LJ, Han TX, Chen WF, Gu CT, et al. 2008. Rhizobium fabae sp nov., a bacterium that nodulates Vicia faba. Int. J. Syst. Evol. Microbiol. 58: 2871–2875.

2007

A1.Tian CF, Wang ET, Han TX, Sui XH, Chen WX＊. 2007. Genetic diversity of rhizobia associated with Vicia faba in three ecological regions of China. Arch. Microbiol. 188: 273–282.

Book

En Tao Wang, Wen Feng Chen, Chang Fu Tian, J. Peter W. Young, Wen Xin Chen. Ecology and Evolution of Rhizobia: Principles and Applications. Springer. 2019.

Book chapter

Zhang B, Jiao J, Zhang P, Cui WJ, Zhang Z, Tian CF*. 2021. Comparative Analysis of Core and Accessory Genes in Coexpression Network. Methods in Molecular Biology 2242:45-58 (in book: Bacterial Pangenomics)

The software works Patent