Tag: Taiwan

As global agriculture confronts severe environmental stress and the imperative to reduce synthetic fertilizer dependency, unlocking the natural mutualisms of crop ecosystems has emerged as a paramount scientific pursuit. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis—a pervasive mutualistic relationship between plants and soil fungi—enables crops to trade carbon for vital subterranean nutrients, particularly phosphate. Following an eight-year investigation, a research team led by Associate Professor Shu-Yi Yang from the Institute of Plant Biology at National Taiwan University (NTU) has published a breakthrough study in Nature Communications. Titled “OsIDD7 integrates signaling networks for arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis,” the research uncovers how the transcription factor IDD7 serves as a master molecular nexus governing this ancient partnership in rice.

While AM fungi develop branched arbuscules within root cells to facilitate reciprocal nutrient delivery, how host plants coordinate internal hormone cascades with phosphate signals to sustain these structures has long remained elusive. The NTU team demonstrated that IDD7 expression surges in arbuscule-containing root cells; without it, fungal colonization collapses, disrupting lipid synthesis and nutrient exchange. Mechanistically, IDD7 collaborates with SLR1—a DELLA protein that relays gibberellin hormone signals—and PHR2, a primary transcription factor governing phosphate starvation responses. Together, this tri-protein complex efficiently activates key symbiotic genes, with IDD7 simultaneously modulating PHR2 expression, confirming its indispensable role at the epicenter of the symbiotic transcriptional network.

By delineating how crops integrate hormonal and nutrient cues to foster microbial symbiosis, NTU’s discovery offers profound implications for food security and climate-resilient farming. Deepening the understanding of these symbiotic pathways provides an actionable genetic roadmap to enhance nutrient-use efficiency and stress tolerance in essential cereal crops. As the research team explores IDD7’s broader epigenetic mechanisms, NTU continues to translate fundamental plant science into scalable agricultural solutions, reinforcing the institution’s commitment to advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through pioneering ecological innovation.

In molecular biology, the prevailing paradigm of gene regulation has long placed transcription factors at the helm, treating promoters on DNA sequences as passive docking sites. Challenging this conventional view, an interdisciplinary research team led by Associate Professor Hsin-Hung David Chou from the Department of Life Science at National Taiwan University (NTU)—in collaboration with Distinguished Professor Nei-Li Chan (NTU College of Medicine) and Associate Professor I-Ren Lee (National Taiwan Normal University)—has published landmark findings in Nature Communications. Their study establishes that bacterial promoters intrinsically dictate the dynamic range and evolutionary trajectory of gene transcription, operating with the precision of an integrated audio system.

Utilizing Escherichia coli as a model organism, the team systematically synthesized and evaluated a comprehensive library of 16.8 million promoter sequence variants, integrating massive empirical datasets with biophysical modeling and single-molecule kinetics. The analysis uncovered a distinct operational dichotomy: the “–10 element” acts as an ON/OFF power switch essential for basal activation, while the “–35 element” functions as a fine-tuning volume knob that scales expression magnitude. Crucially, transcription factors dynamically modulate this volume knob’s engagement with RNA polymerase. The researchers also identified a vital trade-off rule—only promoters with intermediate basal expression attain maximal fold-change regulation—resolving an ongoing academic controversy stemming from prior conflicting hypotheses in Science.

By reaffirming the promoter’s active, autonomous role at the center of transcriptional control, the NTU-led breakthrough provides foundational design principles for synthetic biology and metabolic engineering. The discovery underscores the indispensable value of holistic, high-throughput empirical data in systems biology, avoiding fragmented conclusions. Supported by NTU’s advanced core instrumentation, this research exemplifies how high-impact basic science translates into precise genetic blueprints, driving forward next-generation biotechnology and sustainable biomanufacturing solutions.

As obesity continues to be a major risk factor for various malignancies, integrating innovative medical approaches has become crucial for public health. A multinational research team led by National Taiwan University (NTU) Hospital recently achieved a significant breakthrough, publishing their findings in the top-tier oncology journal Annals of Oncology. The study reveals that non-diabetic obese adults using GLP-1 receptor agonists—commonly known as weight-loss injections like Semaglutide and Tirzepatide—experience a remarkable 41% reduction in the risk of developing obesity-associated cancers (OACs) compared to those receiving only diet and exercise counseling.

The research’s advancement is anchored in a comprehensive analysis using the TriNetX global health research network. Spearheaded by Dr. Heng-Cheng Hsu from NTU Hospital and Dr. Ying-Cheng Chiang from the Hsinchu NTU Branch, in collaboration with National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University and Houston Methodist Hospital, the team analyzed over 160,000 matched individuals from 2014 to 2025. By employing advanced statistical models like Propensity Score Matching (PSM), the researchers successfully transformed complex electronic medical records into a high-quality “emulated clinical trial.” Their findings demonstrated broad protective benefits against 13 types of cancers, regardless of gender, a BMI over 40, or the specific GLP-1 drug used.

Looking toward the future of preventive care, this breakthrough holds profound implications, particularly for highly obesity-linked diseases such as endometrial cancer. While the study highlights the massive cancer-preventive potential of weight management in non-diabetic populations, researchers caution that clinical evaluation is still required, as these drugs do not yet have an official indication for cancer prevention. By leveraging real-world data and advanced biostatistics, NTU continues to provide critical scientific evidence to address complex medical challenges, establishing a solid foundation for future precision medicine and public health policies.

Ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) presents a significant clinical challenge due to its high prevalence in East Asian populations and notorious resistance to chemotherapy. To break through these therapeutic bottlenecks, an interdisciplinary team from National Taiwan University (NTU) and NTU Hospital, led by Professor Ruby Yun-Ju Huang, recently published groundbreaking research in the prestigious journal Nature Communications. By integrating multi-platform spatial transcriptomics with advanced functional models, the team successfully created the world’s first “spatial atlas of OCCC”, precisely detailing how cancer cells adapt across various tumor microenvironments.

The study revealed that OCCC is not a homogeneous mass but exhibits immense spatial heterogeneity. Researchers discovered distinct differences in metabolism and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) between the tumor’s center and its periphery. Cancer cells at the core showed higher oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) and epithelial traits, which correlated with better patient prognoses driven by the LCN2 gene. Conversely, cells near invasive or necrotic edges displayed lower metabolic activity and higher EMT. The team further identified the SOX9-LCN2 axis as a crucial regulatory mechanism governing this cellular plasticity, proving that re-inducing SOX9 can restore epithelial functions and offering a promising target for precision treatments.

Beyond scientific breakthroughs, this milestone underscores NTU’s exceptional capacity for fostering inclusive, interdisciplinary talent. Co-first authored by international doctoral candidate Le Truong Thang and NTU medical graduate Dr. Yi-Te Wang, the collaboration seamlessly bridged smart medical technology with clinical expertise. By institutionalizing diverse academic partnerships across high-impact research platforms, NTU continues to leverage its capacity to address complex health challenges, paving the way for next-generation clinical solutions in global oncology.

As individuals make daily decisions, past experiences significantly influence their future choices. However, when the same action yields both positive and negative outcomes across different contexts, how does the brain integrate these conflicting signals? A research team led by Associate Professor Ming-Tsung Tseng at National Taiwan University’s Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences has recently uncovered the answer. Published in the prestigious journal PLOS Biology, their study reveals that past negative experiences tied to a specific choice increase exploratory behaviors, a mechanism directly regulated by the brain’s dopamine system.

While previous neuroscience research has typically examined reward and punishment learning independently, real-world decisions often involve accumulating mixed results. To address this, the NTU team designed a specialized learning task and combined it with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), computational modeling, and pharmacological validation. They discovered that previous punishment experiences prompt individuals to deviate from optimal, high-reward options in favor of exploring alternatives. Interestingly, this interaction is asymmetric; past reward experiences do not disrupt punishment learning in the same way. Further neuroimaging tests confirmed that blocking dopamine receptors eliminates this punishment-induced exploration, highlighting dopamine’s critical role in evaluating competing value signals within the prefrontal cortex.

This breakthrough not only maps the neural mechanisms behind complex human decision-making but also paves the way for clinical advancements. By decoding how the brain processes loss sensitivity under conflicting information, the findings provide a foundational framework for understanding learning and decision-making deficits in dopamine-related conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, depression, and addiction. Supported by the National Science and Technology Council, NTU continues to leverage interdisciplinary research to unravel the complexities of the human brain, offering scalable insights for global health and medicine.

As extreme rainfall, heat waves, and droughts grow more frequent, the question of what keeps ecosystems from collapsing has moved from academic interest to policy urgency. Scientists have long known that biodiversity supports ecosystem function, but how it confers stability under severe environmental fluctuation has remained unresolved. Researchers at the Institute of Fisheries Science at National Taiwan University (NTU), working with Academia Sinica and international partners including Ryukoku University and Yokohama National University in Japan, have addressed the question through a pairing of long-term field observation and new theoretical modeling.

The first study drew on nine years of monitoring data from Taiwan’s Feitsui Reservoir, integrating 31 ecosystem functions related to the carbon cycle to assess how biodiversity shapes ecosystem multifunctionality. Microbial diversity was found to enhance ecosystem function consistently across multiple timescales—through typhoons, seasonal shifts, and interannual environmental change—whereas environmental variables such as rainfall, temperature, and nutrients influenced function only at particular timescales, identifying biodiversity as the more persistent driver. The second study built a theoretical model that departs from the conventional treatment of biodiversity as a fixed background condition, instead framing it as an ecological variable that changes dynamically over time. The model revealed a resource-diversity feedback linking species diversity with nutrients and food web structure, through which dynamic regulation of diversity alters nutrient use efficiency and predation, lowering the risk of ecosystem collapse. The team then validated the framework against 30 years of phytoplankton monitoring data from Lake Inba in Japan, confirming that both the average level of species diversity and its variation over time causally affect ecosystem stability.

The two studies are complementary: one demonstrates empirically that biodiversity sustains aquatic ecosystem function over the long term, while the other explains the mechanism by which it does so. The central insight—that stability depends not simply on how much biodiversity an ecosystem holds but on its capacity for dynamic self-regulation—provides a new theoretical foundation for conservation policy and reinforces biodiversity protection as a key lever for ecological resilience amid global environmental change. The first study appeared in Ecology Letters in 2025 with postdoctoral researcher Wan-Hsuan Cheng as lead author; the second was published in Ecology in 2026 with Assistant Professor Chun-Wei Chang as lead author.