Zachary Lippman
Professor & HHMI Investigator
Jacob Goldfield Professor of Genetics
Director of Graduate Studies
Ph.D., Watson School of Biological Sciences at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 2004
lippman@cshl.edu | 516-367-8897
My research team studies when and where, and how many branches, flowers, and fruits are produced on plants. All of plant development depends on small groups of stem cells at the tips of shoots known as meristems. By studying the genes that control stem cell production and maturation over space and time, within and between different developmental contexts, we are able to manipulate plant architecture and reproduction to improve crop yields.
Zachary Lippman’s research program integrates development, genetics, genomics, and genome editing to uncover, explore, and exploit the mechanisms that determine how plant stem cells become shoots and flowers. The lab takes advantage of extensive natural and engineered genetic variation that influence vegetative and inflorescence production and architecture in tomato and related nightshade (Solanaceae) species (e.g. potato, pepper, groundcherry) to explore how differences in these processes explain the remarkable diversity in the architectures of these shoot systems found in nature and agriculture. Recent discoveries on the genes and networks underlying this diversity have led to broader questions on the significance of genomic structural variation, genetic redundancy, gene dosage, and epistasis in development, evolution, domestication, and breeding. By linking these fundamental and applied discoveries, Lippman is developing and applying innovative concepts and tools to accelerate crop improvement.
CSHL celebrates SBS Class of 2024
May 7, 2024
The CSHL School of Biological Sciences conferred 11 Ph.D.s and one honorary Doctor of Science degree during its 21st commencement ceremony.
The CSHL School of Biological Sciences’ class of 2024
May 5, 2024
The School of Biological Sciences awarded Ph.D. degrees to 11 students this year. Here are some stories and reflections from their time at CSHL.
At the Lab Episode 1: The tomato of tomorrow
April 2, 2024
In the premiere episode of At the Lab, we visit CSHL Professor & HHMI Investigator Zachary Lippman to glimpse the future of food and farming.
Inside Jones Laboratory
March 28, 2024
Jones is CSHL’s oldest building. Since 1893, its exterior has remained virtually unchanged. Inside is a different story.
An evolutionary mystery 125 million years in the making
March 4, 2024
CSHL plant biologists have stumbled on a peculiar case involving a gene that’s key for controlling growth in tomatoes and other crops.
You say genome editing, I say natural mutation
October 19, 2023
CSHL scientists have discovered that evolution and genome editing in crops are less predictable than previously thought.
CSHL celebrates 20th graduating class
May 9, 2023
Friends, family, and faculty applauded 11 Ph.D. recipients at the CSHL School of Biological Sciences’ 2023 commencement.
The CSHL School of Biological Sciences’ class of 2023
May 7, 2023
The School of Biological Sciences awarded 11 Ph.D. degrees this year. Here, the graduates reflect on their time and experiences at CSHL.
How evolved is your knowledge?
January 26, 2023
Test your knowledge of evolution with this quiz, inspired by the March 2023 performances of Isabella Rossellini’s play, Darwin’s Smile, at CSHL.
Tomato cousin’s coolest quirk
January 25, 2023
Take an up-close look at what CSHL Professor Zachary Lippman describes as “one of the coolest evolutionary novelties to emerge in plants.”
Selected Publications
Establishing Physalis as a Solanaceae model system enables genetic reevaluation of the inflated calyx syndrome
21 Oct 2022 | The Plant Cell | 35(1):351-368
He, Jia, Alonge, Michael, Ramakrishnan, Srividya, Benoit, Matthias, Soyk, Sebastian, Reem, Nathan, Hendelman, Anat, Van Eck, Joyce, Schatz, Michael, Lippman, Zachary
Rapid customization of Solanaceae fruit crops for urban agriculture
23 Dec 2019 | Nature Biotechnology | 38:182-188
Kwon, C, Heo, J, Lemmon, Z, Capua, Y, Hutton, S, Van Eck, J, Park, S, Lippman, Z
Revolutions in agriculture chart a course for targeted breeding of old and new crops
5 Sep 2019 | Science | 366(6466)
Eshed, Y, Lippman, Z
Duplication of a domestication locus neutralized a cryptic variant that caused a breeding barrier in tomato
6 May 2019 | Nature Plants | 5(5):471-497
Soyk, S, Lemmon, Z, Sedlazeck, F, Jimenez-Gomez, J, Alonge, M, Hutton, S, Van Eck, J, Schatz, M, Lippman, Z
All Publications
Engineering the future of Physalis grisea: A focus on agricultural challenges, model species status, and applied improvements
2 Jul 2024 | Plants People Planet
Dale, Savanah, Tomaszewski, Elise, Lippman, Zachary, Van Eck, Joyce
Blooming balloons: Searching for mechanisms of the inflated calyx
28 Jun 2024 | Current Opinion in Plant Biology | 81:102595
He, Jia, Van Eck, Joyce, Lippman, Zachary
Evolutionary conservation of receptor compensation for stem cell homeostasis in Solanaceae plants
Jun 2024 | Horticulture Research | 11(6):uhae126
Seo, Myeong-Gyun, Lim, Yoonseo, Hendelman, Anat, Robitaille, Gina, Beak, Hong, Hong, Woo-Jong, Park, Soon, Lippman, Zachary, Park, Young-Joon, Kwon, Choon-Tak
Extreme restructuring of cis-regulatory regions controlling a deeply conserved plant stem cell regulator
4 Mar 2024 | PLoS Genetics | 20(3):e1011174
Ciren, Danielle, Zebell, Sophia, Lippman, Zachary, Hake, Sarah
Convergent evolution of plant prickles is driven by repeated gene co-option over deep time
22 Feb 2024 | bioRxiv
Satterlee, James, Alonso, David, Gramazio, Pietro, Jenike, Katharine, He, Jia, Arrones, Andrea, Villanueva, Gloria, Plazas, Mariola, Ramakrishnan, Srividya, Benoit, Matthias, Gentile, Iacopo, Hendelman, Anat, Shohat, Hagai, Fitzgerald, Blaine, Robitaille, Gina, Green, Yumi, Swartwood, Kerry, Passalacqua, Michael, Gagnon, Edeline, Hilgenhof, Rebecca, Huggins, Trevis, Eizenga, Georgia, Gur, Amit, Rutten, Twan, Stein, Nils, Yao, Shengrui, Bellot, Clement, Bendahmane, Mohammed, Frary, Amy, Knapp, Sandra, Särkinen, Tiina, Gillis, Jesse, Van Eck, Joyce, Schatz, Michael, Eshed, Yuval, Prohens, Jaime, Vilanova, Santiago, Lippman, Zachary
Extreme restructuring of cis-regulatory regions controlling a deeply conserved plant stem cell regulator
20 Dec 2023 | bioRxiv
Ciren, Danielle, Zebell, Sophia, Lippman, Zachary