Ju-Chen Chia

Ju-Chen Photo
Project Scientist - XLEAP
jc2969@cornell.edu
Education / Experience:
2024 - Present:Project Scientist, XLEAP, CHESS, Cornell University
2022 - Present:Research Associate, Plant Biology, SIPS, Cornell University
2017 - 2022:Postdoctoral Researcher, Soil and Crop Sciences, SIPS, Cornell University
2015 - 2017:Visiting Fellow, Soil and Crop Sciences, SIPS, Cornell University
2014 - 2015:Postdoctoral Researcher, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
2007 - 2014:Ph.D in Biochemical Science and Technology, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
2003 - 2005M.S. in Horticulture, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
2003B.S in Horticulture, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
Research Interests:
  • Plant nutrition and micronutrient homeostasis, with a focus on copper and iron homeostasis. 
  • Integrating molecular genetics, biochemistry, and synchrotron-based X-ray imaging technologies to investigate the roles of essential and toxic elements in biological systems.
Selected Publications:
  1. Chia, J.-C., Liu, X., Dey, S., Yan, J., Niu, Y.#, Vatamaniuk, O.K. (2026) CITF1 interacts with FIT and regulates copper-iron crosstalk in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell. DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koag114
  2. Chia J.-C., Zavodna T.O., Shatokhina H., Kavulych Y., Vatamaniuk O.K. (2025) Copper connections: Coordinating transport, sensing, and systemic signaling in plants. Quant Plant Biol.  DOI: 10.1017/qpb.2025.10027
  3. Chia, J.-C.‡, Woll, A.R.‡, Smieska, L., Vatamaniuk, O.K. (2023) Visualizing metal distribution in plants using Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence microscopy techniques. In Jeong, J. (Ed.). Plant Iron Homeostasis. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2665. Humana. New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-3183-6_14
  4. Chia, J.-C., Yan, J., Ishka, M.R., Faulkner M.M. #, Simons, E.#,  Huang, R., Smieska L., Woll A., Tappero, R., Kiss, A., Jiao, C., Fei, Z., Kochian, L.V., Walker, E., Piñeros, M., Vatamaniuk, O.K. (2023) Loss of OPT3 function decreases phloem copper levels and impairs crosstalk between copper and iron homeostasis and shoot-to-root signaling in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Cell. 35(6):2157-2185. DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koad053
  5. Sheng H., Jiang Y., Ishka M.R., Chia J.-C., Dokuchayeva T., Kavulych Y., Zavodna T.-O., Mendoza P., Huang R., Woll A., Romanyuk N.D., Zhou Y., Vatamaniuk O.K. (2021) YSL3-mediated copper distribution is required for fertility, seed size and protein accumulation in Brachypodium. Plant Physiol. 186:655-676. DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiab054
  6. Yan, J‡., Chia, J.-C.‡., Sheng, H., Jung, H., Zavodna, T.-Z., Huang, R., Zhang, L., Chen., J., Fei., Z., Kochian, L., Vatamaniuk, O.K. (2017) Pollen fertility in Arabidopsis requires the transcription factors CITF1 and SPL7 that integrate copper delivery to anthers and jasmonic acid synthesis. Plant Cell. 29 (12):3012–3029. DOI: 10.1105/tpc.17.00363
Relevant Links: 
XLEAP