Chua Nam Hai

Impact

Climate change could hurt global crop productions due to rising temperatures, higher rates of evaporation and longer periods of dry weather.A major focus of Professor Chua’s lab is the roles of noncoding RNA and regulated protein turnover of transcriptional regulators in plant growth and development.

Understanding smart system in plants at the molecular level, research into the roles of ncRNA in plants’ responses to biotic and abiotic stresses, phosphate deprivation, as well as functions in response to various stress factors can improve crop traits, make agriculture more precise and contribute towards resilient food production

Collaborations, Achievements & Honours

  • Advised government organisations, institutions and MNCs worldwide, including Monsanto, DuPont and several biotechnology-related entities
  • Nurtured more than 180 post-doctoral fellows from over 20 countries
  • Identified key genes that determine plant senescence under nitrogen limitation
  • Identified early detection of insect chewing of plants and vegetables by carbon nano sensor
  • Identified how long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs)mediate stress responses, including nutrient deficiency, drought and pathogen infection
  • Developed non-invasive method for early detection of biotic stress in plants and vegetables, including nitrogen stress by Raman spectroscopy
  • Controlled thermomorphogenesis of model plants through genetic manipulation and chemical treatment
  • Collaborated with MIT on thereal-time detection of in vivoH2O2and the development ofRaman spectroscopy
  • Granted research on high performance precision agriculture system by the SingaporeAgency for Science, Technology and Research (2020)
  • Granted research on disruptive, sustainable technologies for agriculture precision bySingapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology,and National Research Foundation(2018)
  • Nominee,Returning Singaporean Scientists Scheme(2013)
  • Conferred Honorary Doctorate at the Singapore Nanyang Technological University (2008)
  • Recipient of the NUS Distinguished Alumni Service Award (2017)
  • Recipient of theJapan SocietyInternational Prize in Biology, Promotion of Science(2005)
  • Recipient of the Singapore Public Administration Gold Medal (2002)
  • Recipient of the SingaporeNationalScience and TechnologyGoldAward(1998)

Research Areas

Molecular Pathogenesis, Plant Biology

Affiliations

  • Temasek Senior Investigator (Emeritus), TLL
  • Andrew W. Mellon Professor Emeritus, The Rockefeller University
  • Head of Laboratory, Plant Molecular Biology,The Rockefeller University
  • Distinguished Visiting Professor, Biochemistry Department, NUS
  • Fellow, The Royal Society, United Kingdom
  • Academician, Academia Sinica, Taiwan
  • Foreign Academician, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
  • Honorary Member, The Biochemical Society, Japan
  • Honorary Member, The Japanese Society of Plant Physiologists
  • Pioneer Member, The American Society of Plant Biologists
  • Member, The Glaucoma Foundation Scientific Advisory Board,New York

Question

As sessile organisms, how do plants develop sophisticated mechanisms to sense and adapt to dynamic conditions such as nutrition availability, temperature and pathogens?

Approach

Professor Chua’s lab studies plant responses to abiotic and biotic stresses using Arabidopsis thaliana as a model organism.While plants are immobile, they must react quickly to environmental changes. Doing this requires a complex network of signalling pathways that can involve epigenetic factors, specifically long non-coding RNA(lncRNA).

Combining genetic, molecular and biochemical techniques, including mutant screens and analysis of transgenic plants, the lab looks for different components of signal transduction pathways involved in the plant’s response to light, and its ability to suppress viral infection and replication.

Earlier, Professor Chua’s lab found that the Arabidopsis genome encodes around 8,000 long intergenic noncoding RNAs (lincRNAs) and 36,000 natural antisense transcripts (NATs). In particular, the studies demonstrated that lncRNAs without protein coding-capacity are novel players in plant stress responses.

Critically, Professor Chua’s research group established several of the basic tools necessary to conduct molecular research in plants. The lab found key proteins involved in Arabidopsis’ response to the transition from light to dark. It has also led to the identification of proteins that play a role in a plant’s reaction to drought.

Professor Chua’s lab further demonstrated how plants respond to phosphate deprivation, a major component found in plant fertilisers, which is key to designing crop plants that can use fertiliser more efficiently

As part of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) collaboration, the lab is currently applying nano sensors developed by MIT to accurately measure plants’ adaptation to different biotic and a biotic stress.

Professor Chua continues to use the knowledge generated through Arabidopsis for biotechnological improvements of commercial crops, creating sustainable agriculture in regions that are currently poorly suited for it.He is interested in understanding the impact of global warming on plant development.In particular, the improvement of plants for indoor farming.

Situated in the tropics, Singapore has a relatively high ambient temperature, causing high energy consumption to cool down growth chambers in indoor farms. Warm temperature induces thermomorphogenesis, which results in spindly growth of vegetables and loss of market values.

In order to grow vegetables without air conditioning, Professor Chua’s team studies critical regulators aimed at generating new cultivars deficient in thermomorphogenesis response using genome editing technology. The team also develops cutting-edge techniques for non-invasive real-time monitoring of plants, enabling early detection of stress and precise manipulation of conditions.

Bio

Professor Chua earned his Bachelor of Science in Botany and Biochemistry from the University of Singapore in 1965. He later read his Master of Arts and PhD at Harvard University. After serving as a lecturer in biochemistry at the University of Singapore Medical School, he joined the Rockefeller University as a research associate in cell biology, and was named Andrew W. Mellon Professor Emeritus in 1988.

In Singapore, Professor Chua was instrumental in the formation of the Institute of Molecular Agrobiology, now known as TLL. He played a crucial role in attracting top researchers, as well as charting the growth of the national biotechnology sector.

An icon in the academic community, Professor Chua has an impressive record of service as an advisor to government organisations, institutions and multinational corporations worldwide. He has served on the editorial boards of more than 20 scientific journals, and has many patents in the field of plant molecular biology. Having nurtured more than 180 post-doctoral fellows from over 20 countries, Professor Chua believes in following one’s passions, living a happy and interesting life.

Temasek Senior Investigator (Emeritus)

Chua Nam Hai

The lab’s main research interests are signal transduction and gene regulation during plant development.

Contact

chua@mail.rockefeller.edu
+1 (212) 327-8126

Group Publications