Joyce Van Eck

Professor
Joyce Van Eck
jv27@cornell.edu
Office/Lab: B13/B4
Phone: 607-254-1686
Joyce Van Eck Headshot
Office/Lab: B13/B4
Email: jv27@cornell.edu
Office Phone: 607-254-1686
Lab Phone: 607-254-1207
Research Overview

The focus of research in the Van Eck laboratory is biotechnological approaches to the study of gene function and crop improvement. For our studies, we apply several genetic engineering strategies to two major food crops: potato and tomato. The development of biotechnological techniques has made it possible to design and introduce gene constructs into plant cells and recover plants that express the introduced genes. Genes of interest to us have the potential to strengthen a plant’s resistance to disease, improve fruit characteristics, and enhance nutritional quality.

BTI Center for Plant Biotechnology Research

Groundcherry and Goldenberry Project

The Physalis Improvement Project

The Physalis genus is part of the Solanaceae family (also home to the well-known tomato and potato), and is home to the edible species of peruviana and pruinosa. These species are commonly referred to as groundcherry and goldenberry, as well as many other regional names. Plants produce small edible fruits that range from sweet to tart with a variety of unique flavors. This project aims to further explore the cultivation of peruviana and pruinosa in New York State and gauge potential for local food systems. The Physalis Improvement Project is led by the Van Eck research group and is made possible through funding from The Triad and National Science Foundations.

Intern Projects
The focus of research in the Van Eck laboratory is biotechnological approaches in the study of gene function and crop improvement.  The development of biotechnological techniques has made it possible to design and introduce gene constructs into plant cells with the subsequent recovery of plants that express the introduced genes.

We have a summer intern position available on a collaborative NSF-funded project to study the networks involved in meristem transitions in plants and their roles in branching variation and flower production.  Together with our collaborators on this project, we have established an approach that utilizes genetic, genomic, natural variation, and biotechnological tools in tomato and related Solanaceae species to identify and characterize the underlying molecular networks regulating shoot architecture and flower production in plants that exhibit the widespread “sympodial” growth habit.

The Van Eck lab’s role in this project is to develop efficient genetic engineering methods for several Solanaceaefamily members to determine candidate gene involvement in meristem transition and branching across species.  In addition, we are responsible for phenotypic analysis of the resultant transgenic lines that we grow in the BTI greenhouse.

Internship Program | Projects & FacultyApply for an Internship
The nuclear lamina is required for proper development and nuclear shape distortion in tomato
2023.
Blunt, E., Choi, J., Sussman, H., Christopherson, R., Keen, P., Rahmati Ishka, M., Li, L., Idrovo, J., Julkowska, Magdalena, Van Eck, Joyce, Richards, Eric Jean
Journal of Experimental Botany.
:
Genome- and transcriptome-wide off-target analyses of a high-efficiency adenine base editor in tomato
2023.
Sretenovic, S., Green, Y., Wu, Y., Cheng, Y., Zhang, T., Van Eck, Joyce, Qi, Y.
Plant Physiology.
:
Establishing Physalis as a Solanaceae model system enables genetic reevaluation of the inflated calyx syndrome.
2023.
He, J., Alonge, M., Ramakrishnan, S., Benoit, M., Soyk, S., Reem, N.T., Hendelman, A., Van Eck, Joyce, Schatz, M.C., Lippman, Z.B.
Plant Cell..
35
:
351–368
Polerovirus N-terminal readthrough domain structures reveal molecular strategies for mitigating virus transmission by aphids.
2022.
Schiltz, C.J., Wilson, J.R., Hosford, C.J., Adams, M.C., Preising, S.E., DeBlasio, S.L., MacLeod, H.J., Van Eck, Joyce, Heck, M.L., Chappie, J.S.
Nat Commun..
13
:
6368
Dynamic evolution of small signalling peptide compensation in plant stem cell control
2022.
Kwon, C.T., Tang, L., Wang, X., Gentile, I., Hendelman, A., Robitaille, G., Van Eck, Joyce, Xu, C., Lippman, Z.B.
Nat Plants..
8
:
346–355
Accelerating gametophytic growth in the model hornwort Anthoceros agrestis
2022.
Gunadi, A., Li, Fay-Wei, Van Eck, Joyce
Applications in Plant Sciences.
10
:
e11460
The Physalis Improvement Project: blending research with community science: How community science can advance research.
2022.
Van Eck, Joyce
EMBO Rep..
23
:
e53918
Ground tissue circuitry regulates organ complexity in maize and Setaria
2021.
Ortiz-Ramírez, C., Guillotin, B., Xu, X., Rahni, R., Zhang, S., Yan, Z., Coqueiro Dias Araujo. P,, Demesa-Arevalo, E., Lee, L., Van Eck, Joyce, Gingeras, T.R.,, Jackson, D., Gallagher, K.L., Birnbaum, K.D.
Science.
374
:
1247–1252
Plant genome engineering from lab to field-a Keystone Symposia report
2021.
Cable, J., Ronald, P.C., Voytas, D., Zhang, F., Levy, A.A., Takatsuka, A., Arimura, S., Jacobsen, S.E., Toki, S., Toda, E., Gao, C., Zhu, J., Boch, J., Van Eck, Joyce, Mahfouz, M., Andersson, M., Fridman, E., Weiss, T., Wang, K., Qi, Y., Jores, T., Adams, T., Bagchi, R.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.
:
Genome- and transcriptome-wide off-target analyses of an improved cytosine base editor
2021.
Bentley Randall, L., Sretenovic, S., Wu, Y., Yin, D., Zhang, T., Van Eck, Joyce, Qi, Y.
Plant Physiology.
187
:
73–87
A tomato LATERAL ORGAN BOUNDARIES transcription factor, SlLOB1, predominantly regulates cell wall and softening components of ripening.
2021.
Shi, Y., Vrebalov, J., Zheng, H., Xu, Y., Yin, X., Liu, W., Liu, Z., Sorensen, I., Su, G., Ma, Q., Evanich, D., Rose, J.K.C., Fei, Zhangjun, Van Eck, Joyce, Thannhauser, T., Chen, K., Giovannoni, James J.
Proc Natl Acad Sci.
118
:
An Agrobacterium-mediated stable transformation technique for the hornwort model Anthoceros agrestis
2021.
Frangedakis, E., Waller, M., Nishiyama, T., Tsukaya, H., Xu, X., Yue, Y., Tjahjadi, M., Gunadi, A., Van Eck, Joyce, Li, Fay-Wei, Szövényi, P., Sakakibara, K.
New Phytologist.
232
:
1488–1505
Tomato fruit as a model for tissue-specific gene silencing in crop plants
2020.
Feder, A., Jensen, S., Wang, A., Courtney, L., Middleton, L., Van Eck, Joyce, Liu, Y., Giovannoni, James J.
Horticulture Research.
7
:
142
Setaria viridis chlorotic and seedling-lethal mutants define critical functions for chloroplast gene expression
2020.
Feiz, L., Strickler, S.R., Van Eck, Joyce, Mao, L., Movahed, N., Taylor, C., Gourabathini, P., Fei, Zhangjun, Stern, David
Plant J..
:
Applying gene editing to tailor precise genetic modifications in plants
2020.
Van Eck, Joyce
Journal of Biological Chemistry.
:
Major Impacts of Widespread Structural Variation on Gene Expression and Crop Improvement in Tomato
2020.
Alonge, M., Wang, X., Benoit, M., Soyk, S., Pereira, L., Zhang, L., Suresh, H., Ramakrishnan, S., Maumus, F., Ciren, D., Levy ,Y., Harel, T.H., Shalev-Schlosser, G., Amsellem, Z., Razifard, H., Caicedo, A.L., Tieman, D.M., Klee, H., Kirsche, M., Aganezov, S., Ranallo-Benavidez, T.R., Lemmon, Z.H,, Kim, J., Robitaille, G., Kramer, M., Goodwin, S., McCombie, W.R., Hutton, S., Van Eck, Joyce, Gillis, J., Eshed, Y., Sedlazeck, F.J., van der Knaap, E., Schatz, M.C., Lippman, Z.B.
Cell.
182
:
145–161
A review of nutritional properties and health benefits of Physalis species
2020.
Shenstone, E., Lippman, Z., Van Eck, Joyce
Plant Foods Hum Nutr.
75
:
316–325
Robust and Reproducible Agrobacterium-Mediated Transformation System of the C4 Genetic Model Species Setaria viridis
2020.
Nguyen, D.Q., Van Eck, Joyce, Eamens, A.L., Grof, C.P.L.
Front Plant Sci..
11
:
Agrobacterium tumefaciens-Mediated Transformation of Three Milkweed Species (Asclepias hallii, A. syriaca, and A. tuberosa: Apocynaceae).
2020.
Keen, P., Hastings, A., Agrawal., Van Eck, Joyce
Current Protocols in Plant Biology.
:
Generation and Molecular Characterization of CRISPR/Cas9-Induced Mutations in 63 Immunity-Associated Genes in Tomato Reveals Specificity and a Range of Gene Modifications
2020.
Zhang, N., Roberts, H.M., Van Eck, Joyce, Martin, Gregory B.
Frontiers in Plant Science.
11
:
Enhancement of Beta-Carotene Content in Plants
Joyce Van Eck
US Patent: 9,115,338
Or gene and its use in manipulating carotenoid content and composition in plants and other organisms
Joyce Van Eck
US Patent: 8,071,841
Vectors and Cells for Preparing Immunoprotective Compositions Derived from Transgenic Plants
Joyce Van Eck
US Patent: 7,407,802
Vectors and Cells for Preparing Immunoprotective Compositions Derived from Transgenic Plants
Joyce Van Eck
US Patent: 7,132,291

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