Baocai Zhang

Baocai Zhang’s group is interested in studying Plant Cell Shaping and Polysaccharide Biology with the focus on understanding the formation and functional control of structural polysaccharides in crops. Plant cell shaping is fundamental to growth and development and determines the formation of many crop traits. Polysaccharide macromolecules have been evolutionarily selected to form the "structural skeleton" of plant cell walls that largely define cell shape and function. The current projects concentrate on dissecting the multiscale mechanisms governing the three-dimensional shaping of the vascular system in plants, elucidating the panoramic mechanism of crosslinking polysaccharide formation for wall design using optimized polysaccharide analysis methodologies, exploring biomechanical regulation on plant shaping. We aim to develop multiscale cellular dogma for modeling and designing super-efficiency crops with an ideal vascular system, thereby advancing agricultural sustainability.

Plant vascular system has been well recognized as a highly efficient “continuous network” for the transport of water, nutrient and signaling molecules, suggesting a crucial hub that connects most organs. Building on our previous discoveries that highlight the essential role of xylan nanoclusters in orchestrating vessel pit shaping (Cell 2025; Nat Plants 2022a,2022b), our study will concentrate on understanding the 3D shaping of xylem vessels. We would dissect the multiscale mechanisms governing the 3D shaping of xylem vessels, identify crucial hub proteins in the complex molecular regulatory network, and develop digital models to enable rational design of ideal vascular tissue with enhanced efficiency and resilience in crops.

Plant shaping largely depends on tensile cell wall composed of polysaccharide macromolecules, which must fold into appropriate conformations and crosslink to form a continuous network, ranging from nanofibrils to various plant bodies. We have discovered the counteraction of acetylation and deacetylation on xylan, the major interlocking polymer in the secondary cell wall, thereby highlighting the role of xylan directed cell wall assembly (Nat Plants 2017; Plant Cell 2019, 2025). By advancing our polysaccharide analysis techniques to facilitate single-molecule, single-cell and high-throughput analyses, we would dissect the panoramic mechanisms of the biosynthesis of crosslinking polymers including xylans. Our study will clarify the biological roles of their individual epitopes and support the rational design of desired cell walls with explainable structure-function relationships.

Future crop design with high customization should be rooted in the principles of plant shaping in the formation of agronomic traits. Plant cell shaping, a core process of plant growth and development, is intricately regulated at multiple levels to ensure the proper organization of various cell types and the progression of developmental stages. This concept has been demonstrated in our identification of “regulatory hub” proteins that involve in crosstalk with nitrogen signaling, glycolipid formation, and ABA responses (Mol Plant 2023; Plant Cell 2022; Nat Commun 2020; Mol Plant 2018). We will explore biomechanical and multiscale regulation on plant cell shaping to develop multiscale cellular dogma for modeling and designing super-efficiency crops, thereby advancing crop breeding for sustainable agriculture.

PUBLICATIONS (# first author; * corresponding author)

Zhang L#, Gao Y#, Xu Z, Tian Y, Hu J, Wen Z, Li J, Gao C, Zhou Y*, Zhang B*. (2025) Shaping pit structure in vessel walls sustains xylem hydraulics and grain yield. Cell 188: 7238–7251.e15.

Zhang L, Gao C, Gao Y, Yang H, Jia M, Wang X, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2025) New insights into plant cell wall functions. J Genet Genomics 52: 1308–1324.

Wen Z#, Xu Z#, Zhang L#, Xue Y#, Wang H, Jian L, Ma J, Liu Z, Yang H, Huang S, Kang X, Zhou Y, Zhang B*. (2025) XYLAN O-ACETYLTRANSFERASE 6 promotes xylan synthesis by forming a complex with IRX10 and governs wall formation in rice. Plant Cell 37: koae322.

Zhou Y#, Gao Y#, Zhang B#, Yang H, Tian Y, Huang Y, Yin C, Tao J, Wei W, Zhang W, Chen S, Zhou Y*, Zhang J*. (2024). CELLULOSE SYNTHASE-LIKE C proteins modulate cell wall establishment during ethylene-mediated root growth inhibition in rice. Plant Cell 36: 3751–3769.

Zhang L, Zhou Y, Zhang B*. 2024. Xylan-directed cell wall assembly in grasses. Plant Physiol 194: 2197–2207. (Invited review)

Xu R^#, Liu Z^#, Zhou Y, Zhang B*. (2024) Xylan clustering on the pollen surface is required for exine patterning. Plant Physiol 194: 153-167. (Invited research article)

Cao S, Wang Y, Gao Y, Xu R, Ma J, Xu Z, Shang-Guan K, Zhang B*, Zhou Y* (2023) The RLCK-VND6 module coordinates secondary cell wall formation and adaptive growth in rice. Mol Plant 16: 999-1015.

Xu Z^#, Gao Y^#, Gao C^#, Mei J, Wang S, Ma J, Yang H, Cao S, Wang Y, Zhang F, Liu X, Liu Q, Zhou Y*, Zhang B*. (2022) Glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor lipid remodeling directs proteins to the plasma membrane and governs cell wall mechanics. Plant Cell 34: 4778–4794.
(Highlighted by The Plant Cell 2022, 34: 4671–4672)

Wang H^#, Yang H^#, Wen Z, Gao C, Gao Y, Tian Y, Xu Z, Liu X, Persson S, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2022) Xylan-based nanocompartments orchestrate plant vessel wall patterning. Nat Plants 8: 295–306.
(Highlighted by Research Briefing in Nature Plants 2022, 8:330–331)

Zhou Y, Zhang B. (2022) Unprecedented polysaccharide nanostructures sustain vessel wall patterning and robustness. Nat Plants 8: 330–331. (Research Briefing)

Peng J^#, Zhang B^#, Chen H^#, Wang M^#, Wang Y, Li H, Cao S, Yi H, Wang H, Zhou Y*, Gong J*. (2021). Galactosylation of rhamnogalacturonan-II for cell wall pectin biosynthesis is critical for root apoplastic iron reallocation in Arabidopsis. Mol Plant 14: 1640–1651.

Zhang B, Gao Y, Zhang L, Zhou Y*. (2021) The plant cell wall: biosynthesis, construction, and functions. J Integr Plant Biol 63: 251–272.

Cai Y^#, Zhang B^#, Liang L^#, Wang S, Zhang L, Wang L, Cui H*, Zhou Y*, Wang D*. (2021) A solid-state nanopore-based single-molecule approach for label-free characterization of plant polysaccharides. Plant Commun 2: 100106.

Gao Y^#, Xu Z^#, Zhang L^#, Li S, Wang S, Yang H, Liu X, Zeng D, Liu Q, Qian Q, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2020) MYB61 is regulated by GRF4 and promotes nitrogen utilization and biomass production in rice. Nat Commun 11: 5219.

Xue J^#, Zhang B^#, Zhan H^#, Lv Y, Jia X, Wang T, Yang N, Lou Y, Zhang Z, Hu W, Gui J, Cao J, Xu P, Zhou Y, Hu J, Li L*, Yang Z*. (2020) Phenylpropanoid derivatives are essential components of sporopollenin in vascular plants. Mol Plant 13: 1644–1653.

Zhang L, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2019) Cell wall compositional analysis of rice culms. Bio-protocol 9: e3398.

Wang S^#, Yang H^#, Mei J, Liu X, Wen Z, Zhang L, Xu Z, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2019) A rice homeobox protein KNAT7 integrates the pathways regulating cell expansion and wall stiffness. Plant Physiol 181: 669–682.
(Highlighted with News and Views in Plant Physiol 181(2): 385-386)

Zhang L, Gao C, Mentink-Vigier F, Tang L, Zhang D, Wang S, Cao S, Xu Z, Liu X, Wang T, Zhou Y*, Zhang B*. (2019) Arabinosyl deacetylase modulates the arabinoxylan acetylation profile and secondary wall formation. Plant Cell 31: 1113–1126.
(Highlighted with In Brief in Plant Cell 31(5):936)

Zhang Z^#, ZhangB^#, Chen Z, Zhang D, ZhangH, Wang H, Zhang Y, Cai D, Liu J, Xiao S, Huo Y, Liu Jie, Zhang L, Wang M, Liu X, Xue Y, Zhao L*, Zhou Y*, Chen H*. (2018) A PECTIN METHYLESTERASE at the Maize Ga1 locus confers male function in unilateral cross-incompatibility. Nat Commun 9: 3678.

Zhang D, Xu Z, Cao S, Chen K, Li S, Liu X, Gao C, Zhang B*, Zhou Y*. (2018) An uncanonical CCCH-tandem zinc finger protein represses secondary wall synthesis and controls mechanical strength in rice. Mol Plant 11: 163–174.

Zhang B^#, Zhang L^#, Li F^#, Zhang M, Liu X, Wang H, Xu Z, Chu C*, and Zhou Y*. (2017) Control of secondary cell wall patterning involves xylan deacetylation by a GDSL esterase. Nat Plants 3: 17017.
(Highlighted with News and Views in Nat Plants 3: 17024)

Gao Y^#, He C^#, Zhang D, Liu X, Xu Z, Tian Y, Liu XH, Zang S, Pauly M, Zhou Y*, Zhang B*. (2017) Two trichome birefringence-like proteins mediate xylan acetylation, which is essential for leaf blight resistance in rice. Plant Physiol 173: 470–481.

Zhang B and Zhou Y. (2017) Carbohydrate composition analysis in xylem. Methods Mol Biol 1544: 213–222. (Chapter)

Shi Y, Liu X, Li R, Gao Y, Xu Z, Zhang B*, Zhou Y. Retention of OsNMD3 in the cytoplasm disturbs protein synthesis efficiency and affects plant development in rice. (2014) J Exp Bot 65: 3055–3069.

Wu B^#, Zhang B^#, Dai Y^#, Zhang L, Shang-Guan K, Peng Y, Zhou Y*, Zhu Z*. (2012) Brittle Culm15 encodes a membrane-associated chitinase-like protein required for cellulose biosynthesis in rice. Plant Physiol 159: 1440–1452.

Ning J^#, Zhang B^#, Wang N, Zhou Y*, and Xiong L*. (2011) Increased leaf angle1, a Raf-Like MAPKKK that interacts with a nuclear protein family, regulates mechanical tissue formation in the lamina joint of rice. Plant Cell 23: 4334–4347.

Zhang B^#, Liu X^#, Qian Q^#, Liu L, Dong G, Xiong G, Zeng D, and Zhou Y. (2011) A Golgi nucleotide sugar transporter modulates cell wall biosynthesis and plant growth in rice. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 108: 5110–5115.

Zhang B and Zhou Y. (2011) Study on rice brittleness mutants: A way to open the ‘black box’ of monocot cell wall biosynthesis. J Integr Plant Biol 53: 136–142.

Zhang M^#, Zhang B^#, Qian Q^#, Yu Y, Li R, Zhang J, Liu X, Zeng D, Li J, Zhou Y. (2010) Brittle Culm 12, a dual-targeting kinesin-4 protein, controls cell-cycle progression and wall properties in rice. Plant J 63: 312–328.

Zhang B^#, Deng L^#, Qian Q^#, Xiong G, Zeng D, Li R, Guo L, Li J, Zhou Y. (2009) A missense mutation in the transmembrane domain of CESA4 affects protein abundance in the plasma membrane and results in abnormal cell wall biosynthesis in rice. Plant Mol Biol 71: 509–524.

Updated at Jan 2026