Tao Feng

Research Group

Evolution & Diversity

Biography

I am fascinated by the diversity and beauty of alpine plants, particularly the Himalayan alpine flora. My academic journey began with studying the phylogeny and evolution of the genus Potentilla (Rosaceae), which originated and radiated evolutionarily in the Himalayan alpine region. Building on the knowledge gained during my PhD, I investigated the origin and evolution of suberin lamellae (SL), a key evolutionary innovation in seed plants.

In parallel, I developed a strong interest in bioinformatics and created the AGB (Asteraceae Genome Blocks) system to characterize Asteraceae genomes in the context of paleohexaploidization. Currently, my research focuses on the evolution and ecology of floral heating in high-altitude environments, integrating systematics, morphology, ecology, molecular genetics, and genomics.

Previous Positions

2022 to 2025 - Postdoc Researcher - Wageningen University & Research. Wageningen, Netherlands

2018 to 2022 - Postdoc Researcher - Wuhan Botanic Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China

Qualifications

2017 - PhD - University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijingshan, Beijing, China

2011 - BSc - Henan University of Sciences and Technology

Key Publications

'Phylogenomic synteny analysis tracks conserved ancient polyploid-derived triplicated genomic blocks across Asteraceae genomes', (2025), bioRxiv.

'Oryza genome evolution through a tetraploid lens', (2025), Nature Genetics.

'The evolutionary innovation of root suberin lamellae contributed to the rise of seed plants', (2023), Nature Plants.

'Natural variation in root suberization is associated with local environment in Arabidopsis thaliana', (2023), New Phytologist.

'FAD2 gene radiation and positive selection contributed to polyacetylene metabolism evolution in Campanulids', (2019), Plant Physiology.