2012年3月1日至4日，英国诺丁汉大学教授Malcolm Bennett教授到我院进行学术交流访问。访问期间，Malcolm Bennett教授为我校研究生做了题为“System biology analysis of auxin-regulated root gravitropism”的精彩学术报告，并与我校学者、研究生就系统生物学研究的技术和思路展开了热烈的讨论。中科院上海植物生理生态研究所、上海师范大学的研究生也参与了交流讨论。此外，Malcolm Bennett教授还为我校本科生做了题为“My root to research success: building collaborations that span many disciplines”的个人成长经历报告，与我校本科生交流如何选择人生方向、如何进行合作以及如何确立长远的人生目标等话题。张大兵教授与Malcolm Bennett教授还就两所大学间开展双博士学位学生培养、合作课题的申请等学术问题进行了深入讨论。Malcolm Bennett教授曾为诺丁汉大学植物系主任，现是BBSRC Professorial Fellowship，在应用系统生物学方法研究植物根的发育这一领域开展了具有影响力的工作。

其代表性研究论文如下：

1. Dharmasiri,S., Swarup,R., Mockaitis,K., Dharmasiri,N., Singh,S.K., Kowalchyk,M., Marchant,A., Mills,S., Sandberg,G., Bennett,M.J., and Estelle,M. (2006) AXR4 Is Required for Localization of the Auxin Influx Facilitator AUX1. Science 312:1218-1220. 

2. Swarup R, Perry P, Hagenbeek D, et al.  (2007) Ethylene upregulates auxin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis seedlings to enhance inhibition of root cell elongation.  Plant Cell 19 (7): 2186-2196. 

3. Laplaze, L., Benkova, E., Casimiro, I., Maes, L., Vanneste, S., Swarup, R., Weijers, D., Calvo, V., Parizot, B., Herrera-Rodriguez, M., Offringa, R., Graham, N., Doumas, P., Friml, J., Bogusz, D., Beeckman, T., and Bennett, M.  (2007) Cytokinins Act Directly on Lateral Root Founder Cells to Inhibit Root Initiation.  Plant Cell 19: 3889-3900.  

4. Bainbridge, K., Guyomarc’h, S., Bayer, E., Swarup. R., Bennett, M.J., Mandel, T., and Kuhlemeier, C. (2008)  Auxin influx carriers stabilize phyllotactic patterning.  Genes & Development 22: 810-823.  

5.Swarup, K., Benkova, E., Swarup, R., Casimiro, I., Péret, B., Yang, Y., Parry, G., Nielsen, E., De Smet, I., Vanneste, S., Levesque, M.P., Carrier, D., James, N., Calvo, V., Ljung, K., Kramer, E., Roberts, R., Graham, N., Marillonnet, S., Patel, K., Jones, J.D.G., Taylor, C.G., Schachtman, D.P., May, S., Sandberg, G., Benfey, P., Friml, J., Kerr, I., Beeckman, T., Laplaze, L., and Bennett, M.J. (2008) The auxin influx carrier LAX3 promotes lateral root emergence. Nature Cell Biology 10: 946-954. 

6. Ubeda-Tomas,S., Swarup,R., Coates,J., Swarup,K., Laplaze,L., Beemster,G.T.S., Hedden,P., Bhalerao,R., and Bennett, M.J. (2008) Root growth in Arabidopsis requires gibberellin/DELLA signalling in the endodermis. Nature Cell Biology 10:625-628.  

7. Jones, A.R., Kramer, E.M., Knox, K., Swarup, R., Bennett, M.J., Lazarus, C.M., Leyser, H.M.O., and Grierson, C.S. (2009) Auxin transport through non-hair cells sustains root-hair development. Nature Cell Biology 11:78-84. 

8. Bikard, D., Patel, D., Le Mette, C., Giorgi, V., Camilleri, C., Bennett, M.J., and Loudet, O. (2009) Divergent evolution of duplicate genes leads to genetic incompatibilities within Arabidopsis thaliana. Science 323:623-626. 

9. French, A., Ubeda-Tomas, S., Holman, T.J., Bennett, M.J. and Pridmore, T. (2009) High throughput quantification of root growth using a novel image analysis tool.  Plant Physiology 150 (10):1784-1795. 

10. Ubeda-Tomas, S., Federici, F., Casimiro, I., Beemster, G.T.S., Bhalerao, R., Swarup, R., Doerner, P., Haseloff, J., and Bennett, M.J. (2009) Gibberellin Signalling in the Endodermis Controls Arabidopsis Root Meristem Size. Current Biology 19:1194-1199.  

11. Parry, G., Calderon-Villalobos, L.I., Prigge, M., Péret, B., Dharmasiri, S., Itoh, H., Lechner, E., Gray, W.M., Bennett, M., and Estelle, M. (2009) Complex regulation of the TIR1/AFB family of auxin receptors. PNAS 106: 22540-22545. 

12. Dhondt S., Coppens F., De Winter F., Swarup K., Merks R.M.H., Inze D., Bennett M.J., and Beemster T.S. (2010) SHORT-ROOT and SCARECROW regulate leaf growth in Arabidopsis by stimulating S-phase progression of the cell cycle. Plant Physiology 154:1183-1195. 

13. Perrine-Walker F., Doumas P., Lucas M., Vaissayre V., Beauchemin N.J., Band L.R., Chopard J., Crabos A., Conejero G., Peret B., King J.R., Verdeil J-L., Hocher V., Franche C., Bennett M.J., Tisa L.S. and Laplaze L.  (2010)  Auxin carriers localization drives auxin accumulation in plant cells infected by frankia in casuarinas glauca actinorhizal nodules.  Plant Physiology 154:1372-1380. 

14. De Rybel B. , Vassileva V., Parizot  B., Demeulenaere  M., Grunewald  W., Audenaert  D., Van Campenhout  J., Overvoorde  P., Jansen  L.,  Vanneste S., MöllerB., Wilson  M, Holman  T., Van Isterdael G., Brunoud G., Vuylsteke M., Vernoux T,  De Veylder  L., Inzé  D., Weijers  D.,  Bennett  M.J. and Beeckman T.  (2010)  A novel Aux/IAA28 signalling cascade activates GATA23-dependent specification of lateral root founder cell identity. Current Biology 20:1697-1706.  

15. Lucas M, Swarup R, Paponov IA, Swarup K, Casimiro I, Lake D, Péret B, Zappala S, Mairhofer S, Whitworth M, Wang J, Ljung K, Marchant A, Sandberg G, Holdsworth MJ, Palme K, Pridmore T, Mooney S, Bennett MJ (2010) Short-Root regulates primary, lateral, and adventitious root development in Arabidopsis.Plant Physiology 155, 384–98 

16. Middleton AM, King JR, Bennett MJ, Owen MR (2010) Mathematical modelling of the Aux/IAA negative feedback loop. Bulletin of Mathematical Biology 72, 1383–1407  

17. De Smet I, Lau S, Voss U, Vanneste S, Benjamins R, Rademacher EH, Schlereth A, De Rybel B, Vassileva V, Grunewald W, Naudts M, Levesque MP, Ehrismann JS, Inzé D, Luschnig C, Benfey PN, Weijers D, Van Montagu MC, Bennett MJ, Jürgens G, Beeckman T (2010) Bimodular auxin response controls organogenesis in Arabidopsis. PNAS 107, 2705–2710  

18. Dhondt S., Coppens F., De Winter F., Swarup K., Merks R.M.H., Inze D., Bennett M.J., and Beemster T.S. (2010) SHORT-ROOT and SCARECROW regulate leaf growth in Arabidopsis by stimulating S-phase progression of the cell cycle. Plant Physiology 154:1183-1195.

19. Delphine Gendre, Jaesung Oh, Yohann Boutté, Jacob Best, Lacey Samuels, Robert Nilsson, Tomohiro Uemura, Alan Marchant, Malcolm Bennett, Markus Grebe, Rishikesh Bhalerao (2011) The conserved Arabidopsis ECHIDNA protein mediates trans-Golgi-network trafficking and cell elongation. PNAS 108, 8048-8053

20. Lucas M, Laplaze L, Bennett MJ (2011) Plant systems biology: network matters. Plant, Cell & Environment 34, 535-553  

21. Hacham Y, Holland N, Butterfield C, Ubeda-Tomas S, Bennett MJ, Chory J, Savaldi-Goldstein S (2011) Brassinosteroid perception in the epidermis controls root meristem size.Development 138, 839–48  

22. Vernoux T, Brunoud G, Farcot E, Morin V, Van den Daele H, Legrand J, Oliva M, Das P, Larrieu A, Wells D, Guédon Y, Armitage L, Picard F, Guyomarch S, Cellier C, Parry G, Koumproglou R, Doonan JH, Kepinski S, Estelle M, Godin C, Bennett M, De Veylder L and Traas J (2011). The auxin signalling network translates dynamic input into robust patterning at the shoot apex.  Molecular Systems Biology (in press).

23. Brunoud G, Wells DM, Oliva M, Larrieu A, Mirabet V, Burrow AH, Beeckman T, Kepinski S, Traas J, Bennett MJ, Vernoux T (2012) A novel sensor to map auxin response and distribution at high spatio-temporal resolution.  Nature doi:10.1038/nature10791