Zhen-Ming Pei

Associate Professor of Biology

My laboratory is interested in the early signaling events by which plants sense environmental signals and decode to give the appropriate responses. Upon perception of external signals, cell surface receptors trigger an increase in cytosolic free calcium concentration, which is mediated by ion channels. Our long-term goals are to identify these receptors and ion channels, isolate their interacting components, and assign molecular functions to them. Currently, we are using multidisciplinary approaches of biophysics, biochemistry, cell biology, molecular genetics, and function genomics to dissect the signaling cascades of external calcium as well as nitric oxide in the model plant Arabidopsis.

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Associate Professor of Biology

Contact Information

  • Office Location: 3102 FFSC, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-1000
  • Email Address: zpei@duke.edu

Education

  • B.S. Lanzhou University (China), 1985
  • M.S. Fudan University (China), 1990
  • Ph.D. Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology (China), 1993

Courses Taught

  • BIOLOGY 412S: Sensory Signal Transduction
  • BIOLOGY 213D: Cell Signaling and Diseases

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Gao, P., S. Fu, Z. Luo, Z. Pei, and L. Hao. “A probiotic Lacticaseibacillus paracacei isolate from traditional Chinese fermented mung bean juice capable of alleviating oxidative stress in colorectal cells.” Food Bioscience 62 (December 1, 2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fbio.2024.105147.
  • Lowry, Augustus J., Pengfei Liang, Mo Song, Yuichun Wan, Zhen-Ming Pei, Huanghe Yang, and Yang Zhang. “TMEM16 and OSCA/TMEM63 proteins share a conserved potential to permeate ions and phospholipids.,” November 4, 2024. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.96957.
  • Chen, Wei, Jing Xu, Jia Chen, Jun-Feng Wang, Shu Zhang, and Zhen-Ming Pei. “Acidic Stress Induces Cytosolic Free Calcium Oscillation, and an Appropriate Low pH Helps Maintain the Circadian Clock in Arabidopsis.” Plants (Basel, Switzerland) 13, no. 21 (November 2024): 3107. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13213107.
  • Pei, Songyu, Qi Tao, Wenke Li, Guoning Qi, Borong Wang, Yan Wang, Shiwen Dai, et al. “Osmosensor-mediated control of Ca2+ spiking in pollen germination.” Nature 629, no. 8014 (May 2024): 1118–25. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07445-6.
  • Chen, Junbin, Lei Li, Jong Hum Kim, Benjamin Neuhäuser, Mingyu Wang, Michael Thelen, Richard Hilleary, et al. “Small proteins modulate ion-channel-like ACD6 to regulate immunity in Arabidopsis thaliana.” Molecular Cell 83, no. 23 (December 2023): 4386-4397.e9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2023.10.030.