Frans Tax

Professor - Molecular and Cellular Biology, BIO5, Genetics GIDP
520-626-1186 / 520-626-3501 (Lab)

Educational Background

  • BA Zoology, University of North Carolina
  • PhD Genetics, University of Washington
  • Postdoctoral training-University of Wisconsin

Research Interests

  • Plant development, especially stem cells and their differentiation into specialized cells
  • Application of developmental genetics to crop plants

Selected Publications

Bryan, A, Obaidi, A.Wierzba M. and F. E. Tax. XYLEM INTERMIXED WITH PHLOEM1, a leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinase required for stem growth and vascular development in Arabidopsis thaliana. (Planta, in press)
Durbak, A.R. and Tax, F. E. CLAVATA Signaling Pathway Receptors of Arabidopsis Regulate Cell Proliferation in Fruit Organ Formation as well as in Meristems (2011), published ahead of print June 24, 2011, doi:10.1534/genetics.111.130930.
Nodine, M., Bryan, A.C., Racolta, A. Jerofsky, K.V. and F.E. Tax. (2011) A few standing for many: RLKs in embryogenesis. Trends in Plant Sciences 16: 211-217.
Belkadhir, Y., Durbak, A., Wierzba, M, Schmitz, R. S., Aguirre, A., Michel, R., Rowe, S., Fujioka, S. and Tax, F.E. (2010) Intragenic Suppression of a Trafficking-Defective Brassinosteroid Receptor Mutant in Arabidopsis. Genetics, 185: 1283-1296.
Yamaguchi, Y., Huffaker, A., Bryan, A.C., Tax, F. E. and Ryan, C. (2010) PEPR2 Is a Second Receptor for the Pep1 and Pep2 Peptides and Contributes to Defense Responses in Arabidopsis, Plant Cell 22:508-22.
Nodine, M. and Tax, F.E. (2008) Two receptor-like kinases that are required together for the establishment of Arabidopsis cotyledon primordia. Developmental Biology 314: 161-170.
Nodine, M., Yadegari, R. and Tax, F.E. (2007) RPK1 and TOAD2 are two receptor-like kinases redundantly required for Arabidopsis embryonic pattern formation. Developmental Cell 12:943-956.
Morillo, S.A. and Tax, F.E. (2006) Functional analysis of receptor-like kinases in monocots and dicots. Current Opinion in Plant Biology 9:460-9.
Tax, F.E. and Durbak, A. (2006) Meristems in the movies: live imaging as a tool for decoding intercellular signaling in shoot apical meristems. Plant Cell 18:1331-7.
Dievart, A., Dalal, M., Tax, F.E., Lacey, A.D., Huttly, A., Li. J. and Clark, S.E. (2003). CLAVATA1 dominant-negative alleles reveal functional overlap between multiple receptor kinases that regulate meristem and organ development. Plant Cell. 15:1198-1211.
Li, J., Wen, J., Lease, K.A., Doke, J.T., Tax, F.E. and Walker, J.C. (2002) BAK1, an Arabidopsis leucine-rich repeat receptor-like protein kinase, interacts with BRI1 and modulates brassinosteroid signaling. Cell 110:213-222.
Tax, F.E. and Vernon. D. (2001) T-DNA associated duplication/translocations in Arabidopsis: implication for mutant analysis, reverse genetics and genomics resources. Plant Physiology 126:1527-1538.
Noguchi, T., Fujioka, S., Choe, S., Takatsuto, S., Yoshida, S., Yuan, H., Feldmann, K.A. and Tax, F.E. (1999). Brassinosteroid-insensitive (bri1) dwarf mutants of Arabidopsis accumulate brassinosteroids. Plant Physiology 121:743-752.
Krysan, P.J., Young, J.C., Tax,F. and Sussman, M.R. (1996). Identification of transferred DNA insertions within Arabidopsis genes involved in signal transduction and ion transport. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93:8145-8150.

Teaching Responsibilities

  • MCB 422 Problem solving using genetic tools (Fall and Spring)
  • MCB 546 Genetic and Molecular Networks (Spring)