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Research Interests
I work on photosynthesis, including effects of environmental stress and potential global climate change, with studies ranging from the cellular to the whole plant level. Research on the mechanism and evolution of carbon assimilation includes studies on C4, C3 and CAM plants. Recent research on C4 photosynthesis has been focused on diversity in structure, function and evolution. One project involves studies in the family Chenopodiaceae that includes collections of species from Central Asian Deserts that are adapted to high temperature, drought, and salinity. Opportunities exist to characterize the structural, functional, and evolutionary relationships among species and their adaptation to different environments. Most recently, my colleagues and I have shown from studies on chenopods that C4 photosynthesis, surprisingly, can occur in a single photosynthetic cell (i.e. without the Kranz anatomy which was previously thought to be required). Another project involves studies on source-sink relationships in carbon partitioning using Arabidopsis as a model system, and rice as an important crop.
I am a member of a consortium of scientists, sponsored by the International Rice Research Institute, The Phillipines, whose goal is exploring potential for genetic engineering of rice, a C3 crop, to perform C4 photosynthesis. There are opportunities for students to participate in meetings (e.g. American Society of Plant Biologists, Annual Photosynthesis Conference in Monterey, CA, and International Photosynthesis Congress).
2002, listed on Institute for Scientific Information List of 108 Most Cited Researchers in Plant and Animal Science. 2002, received Charles F. Kettering Award, for excellence in the field of Photosynthesis, from the American Society of Plant Biologists.
2003, presented with Sahlin Award for Excellence in Research, Teaching and Arts, by Washington State University. 2003, presented Washington State University's 69th Annual Distinguished Faculty Address, "Living by Photosynthesis."
2006, received WSU College of Sciences Distinguished Faculty Award.
2007, Promoted to rank of Regents Professor
Representative Publications
Voznesenskaya EV, N Koteyeva, SDX Chuong, A Ivanova, J Barroca and GE Edwards. Physiological, anatomical and biochemical characterization of photosynthetic types in genus Cleome (Cleomaceae). Special Issue in Memory of Vincent R. Franceschi. Functional Plant Biol. 34: 247-267.
Boyd, CN, VR Franceschi, SDX Chuong, H Akhani, O Kiirats, M Smith and GE Edwards. Flowers of Bienertia cycloptera and Suaeda aralocaspica (Chenopodiaceae) complete the life cycle performing single-cell C4 photosynthesis. Special Issue in Memory of Vincent R. Franceschi. Functional Plant Biol. 34: 268-281.
Maricle, BR, RW Lee, CE Hellquist, O Kiirats, GE Edwards. Effects of salinity on chorophyll fluorescence and CO2 fixation in C4 estuarine grasses. Photosynthetica. 45: 433-440.
Murphy, LR, J Barroca, VR Franceschi, R Lee, EH Roalson, GE Edwards and MSB Ku. Diversity and plasticity of C4 photosynthesis in Eleocharis (Cyperaceae). Functional Plant Biol. 34: 571-580.
Edwards, GE, E Voznesenskaya, M Smith, N Koteyeva, Y Park, J-H Park, O Kiirats, TW Okita and SDX Chuong. 2007. Breaking the Kranz paradigm in terrestrial C4 plants: Does it hold promise for C4 rice? In: Proceedings of the 2006 meeting of the C4 Rice Consortium (Sheehy JE, Mitchell PL and Hardy B, editors). International Rice Research Institute, Makati City, Philippines. In Press.
Chuong, SDX, VR Franceschi and GE Edwards. 2006. Two unique patterns of organelle partitioning required for C4 photosynthesis in a single cell are maintained by the cytoskeleton in family Chenopodiaceae. The Plant Cell. 18: 2207-2223.
Lara, MV, SDX Chuong, H Akhani, CS Andreo and GE Edwards, 2006. Species having C4 single cell type photosynthesis in family Chenopodiaceae evolved a photosynthetic phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase like that of C4 Kranz type species. Plant Physiology. 142: 673-684.
Barkan, L, MA Evans and GE Edwards, 2006. Increasing UV-B induces biphasic leaf cell expansion in Phaseolus vulgaris, suggesting multiple mechanisms for controlling plant growth. Photochemistry and Photobiology. 82: 1612-1620.
Voznesenskaya, EV, VR Franceschi, SDX Chuong and GE Edwards. 2006. Functional characterization of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase type C4 leaf anatomy: Immuno, cytochemical and ultrastructural analyses. Annals of Botany 98: 77-91.
Kapralov MV, H Akhani, EV Voznesenskaya, G Edwards, V Franceschi, E Roalson. 2006. Phylogenetic relationships in the Salicornioideae /Suaedoideae /Salsoloideae s.l. (Chenopodiaceae) clade and a clarification of the phylogenetic position of Bienertia and Alexandra using multiple DNA sequence datasets. Systematic Botany 31: 571-585.
Akhani H, J Barroca, N Koteyeva, E Voznesenskaya, V Franceschi, G Edwards, SM Ghaffari, W Stichler and H Ziegler. 2005. Bienertia sinuspersici (Chenopodiaceae): a new species from SW Asia and discovery of a third terrestrial C4 plant without Kranz anatomy. Systematic Botany 30: 290-301.
Voznesenskaya EV, NK Koteyeva, SDX Chuong, H Akhani, GE Edwards, and VR Franceschi. 2005. Differentiation of cellular and biochemical features of the single cell C4 syndrome during leaf development in Bienertia cycloptera (Chenopodiaceae). (article highlighted on cover page of issue) Am. J. Bot. 92: 1784-1795.
Edwards GE, VR Franceschi, EV Voznesenskaya. 2004. Single-cell C4 photosynthesis versus the dual-cell (Kranz) paradigm. Annual Review of Plant Biology. 55: 173-196.
Kramer DM, TJ Avenson, GE Edwards. 2004. Dynamic flexibility in the light reactions of photosynthesis governed by both electron and proton transfer reactions. Trends in Plant Science 9: 339-348.
Voznesenskaya EV, VR Franceschi, O Kiirats, EG Artyusheva, H Freitag, GE Edwards. 2002. Proof of C4 photosynthesis without Kranz anatomy in Bienertia cycloptera (Chenopodiaceae). The Plant Journal. 31: 649-662 (article highlighted on cover page of issue).
Sun J, KM Gibson, O Kiirats, TW Okita, GE Edwards. 2002. Interactions of nitrate and CO2 enrichment on growth, carbohydrates and Rubisco in Arabidopsis starch mutants – significance of starch and hexose. Plant Physiol. 130: 1573-1583.
Voznesenskaya E, V Franceschi, O Kiirats, H Freitag and GE Edwards. 2001. Kranz anatomy is not essential for terrestrial C4 plant photosynthesis. Nature 414: 543-546.
Edwards GE, RT Furbank, MD Hatch and CB Osmond. 2001. What does it take to be C4? Lessons from the evolution of C4 photosynthesis. In: 75th Anniversary Issue on Conceptual Breakthroughs in Plant Biology. Plant Physiol. 125: 46-49.