申请人长期从事菊花遗传育种研究。建立了“中国菊花种质资源保存中心”，挖掘出67份抗性育种核心种质；提出杂交引起的基因组、转录组和甲基化水平的快速改变可加速菊花及其近缘属植物的进化历程；明确了杂种胚败育是菊花远缘杂交障碍的主要原因，率先建立了以远缘杂交、外源种属抗/耐性利用为主体的菊花育种技术体系，创制出一批抗性新种质，其中6个属间杂种及聚合抗蚜性、耐盐性与托桂花型的3属4物种新种质为首次报道；发现了菊花在16 ℃温和低温驯化下的ICE1-miRNA398-CSD耐寒调节新路径；挖掘出多个重要园艺性状和抗/耐性优异基因，并在揭示其功能基础上实现了菊花目标性状的定向分子改良。以第一或通讯作者发表论文206篇，其中SCI收录72篇；以第一完成人获授权国家发明专利17项、国家植物新品种权14个、省级鉴定品种3个；以第一完成人获部省级一等奖2项、二等奖3项，以第三完成人获国家科技进步奖二等奖1项。

My research interests are focused on genetics and breeding of chrysanthemum. We have established China Chrysanthemum Germplasm Preserving Centre, 67 excellent germplasms were excavated. We found that genomic and epigenetic alteration resulted from hybridization could accelerate the evolutionary progress of the hybrid between chrysanthemum and related species. Hybrid embryo abortion is found to be the main barrier in distant hybridization between chrysanthemum and related species. A distant hybridization-dependent breeding technology system aiming to transfer resistance/tolerance traits from alien species to cultivated chrysanthemum was established, and a series of new varieties have been bred, among which six intergeneric hybrids is first reported and especially the hybrid derived from four species within three genera combined aphid resistance, salt tolerance and anemone-type flower. We illustrated that ICE1 could induce freezing tolerance of chrysanthemum via miR398-CSD pathway under moderate low temperature acclimation; several excellent genes controlling important resistant/tolerant traits and horticultural traits were cloned and corresponding functions of the target genes were identified, several traits of chrysanthemum were improved by genetic transformation. Up to now, I have published 206 papers as the first or corresponding author, among which 72 papers are published in peer-reviewed international SCI journals. As the first inventor, I have received 17 national invention patents, 14 nationally authorized plant variety rights, 3 provincial authentication varieties, and accomplished the first grade prize of Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Award (2012) and Jiangsu Provincial Agricultural Technology Promotion Award (2011), and the second grade prize of Science and Technology Award by the Ministry of Education (2008), Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Progress Award by the Ministry of Agriculture (2007) and Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award (2003), and won a second prize of National in Scientific and Collective Technology Progress Award (2011) as a third participant.