Dr Steven Hussey
Senior Mortlock Fellow
School of Agriculture, Food and Wine
Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
I'm passionate about plant developmental biology, functional genomics and applied biotechnology. I've conducted research in South Africa, the United States and Australia, mostly on the transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of wood development in Eucalyptus. I hold an affiliate position at the University of Pretoria (since 2022) and a Prestigious (P) rating with the National Research Foundation of South Africa (2020-2025).
I'm a plant molecular biologist interested in the transcriptional and epigenomic regulation of development, lignocellulosic feedstocks, (secondary) cell wall biology and synthetic biology. In previous and current research, I've aimed to understand the transcriptional regulatory networks underlying xylogenesis, uncover the biological roles of transcription factors and gene promoters, decipher and molecular mechanisms underlying traits of interest, and design synthetic circuits for the manipulation and bioengineering of plant systems. I have a wide interest in plant biotechnology and have extensive experience working with transdisciplinary teams.
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Awards and Achievements
Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount 2022 Research Award Hofmeyr-Van Schaik Silver Medal South African Genetics Society South Africa - 2020 Research Award Prestigious (P) Award National Research Foundation South Africa -
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Journals
Year Citation 2023 Takawira, L. T., Hadj Bachir, I., Ployet, R., Tulloch, J., San Clemente, H., Christie, N., . . . Hussey, S. G. (2023). Functional investigation of five R2R3-MYB transcription factors associated with wood development in Eucalyptus using DAP-seq-ML. Plant Molecular Biology, 113(1-3), 33-57.
2022 Karannagoda, N., Spokevicius, A., Hussey, S., Cassan-Wang, H., Grima-Pettenati, J., & Bossinger, G. (2022). Eucalyptus grandis AUX/INDOLE-3-ACETIC ACID 13 (EgrIAA13) is a novel transcriptional regulator of xylogenesis. Plant Molecular Biology, 109(1-2), 51-65.
Scopus3 Europe PMC22020 Karannagoda, N., Spokevicius, A., Hussey, S., & Bossinger, G. (2020). Microanalytical techniques for phenotyping secondary xylem. IAWA Journal, 41(3), 356-389.
Scopus42020 Lyall, R., Schlebusch, S. A., Proctor, J., Prag, M., Hussey, S. G., Ingle, R. A., & Illing, N. (2020). Vegetative desiccation tolerance in the resurrection plant Xerophyta humilis has not evolved through reactivation of the seed canonical LAFL regulatory network. Plant Journal, 101(6), 1349-1367.
Scopus17 Europe PMC132020 Yang, X., Medford, J. I., Markel, K., Shih, P. M., De Paoli, H. C., Trinh, C. T., . . . Tuskan, G. A. (2020). Plant Biosystems Design Research Roadmap 1.0. BioDesign Research, 2020.
Scopus172019 Tonfack, L. B., Hussey, S. G., Veale, A., Myburg, A. A., & Mizrachi, E. (2019). Analysis of orthologous SECONDARY WALL-ASSOCIATED NAC DOMAIN1 (SND1) promotor activity in herbaceous and woody angiosperms. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 20(18), 16 pages.
Scopus2 Europe PMC22019 Brown, K., Takawira, L. T., O'Neill, M. M., Mizrachi, E., Myburg, A. A., & Hussey, S. G. (2019). Identification and functional evaluation of accessible chromatin associated with wood formation in Eucalyptus grandis. New Phytologist, 223(4), 1937-1951.
Scopus9 Europe PMC22019 Hussey, S. G., Grima-Pettenati, J., Myburg, A. A., Mizrachi, E., Brady, S. M., Yoshikuni, Y., & Deutsch, S. (2019). A Standardized Synthetic Eucalyptus Transcription Factor and Promoter Panel for Re-engineering Secondary Cell Wall Regulation in Biomass and Bioenergy Crops. ACS Synthetic Biology, 8(2), 463-465.
Scopus14 Europe PMC72018 Laubscher, M., Brown, K., Tonfack, L. B., Myburg, A. A., Mizrachi, E., & Hussey, S. G. (2018). Temporal analysis of Arabidopsis genes activated by Eucalyptus grandis NAC transcription factors associated with xylem fibre and vessel development. Scientific Reports, 8(1), 14 pages.
Scopus15 Europe PMC92018 Lu, Q., Shao, F., Macmillan, C., Wilson, I. W., van der Merwe, K., Hussey, S. G., . . . Qiu, D. (2018). Genomewide analysis of the lateral organ boundaries domain gene family in Eucalyptus grandis reveals members that differentially impact secondary growth. Plant Biotechnology Journal, 16(1), 124-136.
Scopus48 Europe PMC302017 Hussey, S. G., Loots, M. T., Van Der Merwe, K., Mizrachi, E., & Myburg, A. A. (2017). Integrated analysis and transcript abundance modelling of H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in developing secondary xylem. Scientific Reports, 7(1), 14 pages.
Scopus21 Europe PMC152015 Hussey, S. G., Saïdi, M. N., Hefer, C. A., Myburg, A. A., & Grima-Pettenati, J. (2015). Structural, evolutionary and functional analysis of the NAC domain protein family in Eucalyptus. New Phytologist, 206(4), 1337-1350.
Scopus56 Europe PMC372015 Hussey, S. G., Mizrachi, E., Groover, A., Berger, D. K., & Myburg, A. A. (2015). Genome-wide mapping of histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation in Eucalyptus grandis developing xylem. BMC Plant Biology, 15(1), 14 pages.
Scopus27 Europe PMC122014 Myburg, A. A., Grattapaglia, D., Tuskan, G. A., Hellsten, U., Hayes, R. D., Grimwood, J., . . . Schmutz, J. (2014). The genome of Eucalyptus grandis. Nature, 510(7505), 356-362.
Scopus662 Europe PMC3552013 Hussey, S. G., Mizrachi, E., Creux, N. M., & Myburg, A. A. (2013). Navigating the transcriptional roadmap regulating plant secondary cell wall deposition. Frontiers in Plant Science, 4(AUG), 21 pages.
Scopus125 Europe PMC782011 Botha, J., Pinard, D., Creux, N., Hussey, S., Maritz-Olivier, C., Spokevicius, A., . . . Myburg, A. (2011). Characterising the role of the Eucalyptus grandis SND2 promoter in secondary cell wall biosynthesis. BMC proceedings, 5(Suppl 7), P105.
Europe PMC12011 Hussey, S. G., Mizrachi, E., Spokevicius, A. V., Bossinger, G., Berger, D. K., & Myburg, A. A. (2011). SND2, a NAC transcription factor gene, regulates genes involved in secondary cell wall development in Arabidopsis fibres and increases fibre cell area in Eucalyptus. BMC Plant Biology, 11(1), 17 pages.
Scopus135 Europe PMC842011 Hussey, S., Mizrachi, E., Berger, D., & Myburg, A. (2011). The role of SND2 in the regulation of Arabidopsis fibre secondary cell wall formation. BMC proceedings, 5(Suppl 7), P114.
Europe PMC1 -
Book Chapters
Year Citation 2022 Hussey, S. G. (2022). Transcriptional regulation of secondary cell wall formation and lignification. In Advances in Botanical Research (Vol. 104, pp. 317-361). Elsevier.
DOI Scopus52016 Hussey, S. G., Wegrzyn, J. L., & Vasquez-Gross, H. A. (2016). Evolutionary Histories of Gene Families in Angiosperm Trees. In Plant Genetics and Genomics: Crops and Models (pp. 121-137). Springer International Publishing.
DOI
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Sources |
Total for year |
2014 |
DST, NRF, Sappi, Mondi, THRIP |
ZAR560,000 |
2015 |
DST, NRF, Sappi, Mondi, THRIP |
ZAR560,000 |
2016 |
DOE-JGI, DST, NRF, Sappi, Mondi, THRIP, UP, NSTF, Inqaba Biotec, Whitehead Scientific, Thermo Scientific, ACGT, UP |
ZAR1,870,000 |
2017 |
DOE-JGI, UP, Australia Awards, THRIP, Sappi, Mondi |
ZAR1,040,000 |
2018 |
DOE-JGI, UP, GCRF, THRIP, Sappi, Mondi |
ZAR1,600,000 |
2019 |
DST-TIA, UP, GCRF, Sappi, Mondi |
ZAR2,000,000 |
2020 |
DST-TIA, UP, GCRF, Sappi, Mondi |
ZAR1,830,000 |
2021 |
NRF, GCRF, DSI, TIA |
ZAR1,925,000 |
2022 |
NRF, DSI, TIA |
ZAR1,200,000 |
2023 |
NRF, DSI, TIA |
ZAR950,000 |
|
TOTAL |
ZAR13,535,000 (~A$1.1M) |
2021 Module coordinator and lecturer: Eukaryotic Gene Regulation 351
Module coordinator: Molecular and Cell Biology 721 (Honours course)
2020 Module coordinator and lecturer: Eukaryotic Gene Regulation 351
Module coordinator: Molecular and Cell Biology 721 (Honours course)
2019 Lecturer for Eukaryotic Gene Regulation 351
Module coordinator: Molecular and Cell Biology 721 (Honours course)
Guest lecturer: Plant Genetics and Crop Biotechnology 361
Lecturer: Spring School on Solar Energy and Photosynthesis
2018 Lecturer for Plant Genetics and Crop Biotechnology 361
Lecturer for Molecular and Cell Biology 721 (Honours course)
Lecturer: Spring School on Solar Energy and Photosynthesis
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Memberships
Date Role Membership Country 2022 - ongoing Member Australian Society of Plant Scientists Australia -
Offices Held
Date Office Name Institution Country 2018 - 2021 Secretary South African Genetics Society South Africa
Connect With Me
External Profiles