Sheng Yang He is the Benjamin E. Powell Distinguished Professor of Biology at Duke University, with joint appointments in Cell Biology. He leads the He Lab, focusing on molecular mechanisms of plant immunity against microbial pathogens, particularly the interplay between host-microbe interactions and environmental factors like climate change. His research bridges plant pathology, microbiology, and systems biology. Education: PhD in Plant Pathology from Cornell University (1991), followed by faculty roles at the University of Kentucky and Michigan State University (1995–2020) before joining Duke in 2020. He is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator (2011–2024) and a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (2015). Research Interests: Host defense mechanisms, bacterial effector proteins, stomatal immunity, microbiome dynamics, and climate resilience in crops. Recent work addresses how temperature and humidity influence plant-pathogen interactions and microbiome composition. Grants & Awards: Received HHMI funding renewal (2024–2031), Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher (2021–2024), and recognition for pioneering studies on Pseudomonas syringae pathogenesis and Arabidopsis immunity. His lab has produced over 200 peer-reviewed articles. Advising & Mentoring: Guided over 20 PhD students and postdocs, many of whom now lead academic or industrial research groups. Notable advisees include Brad Paasch (Sandia National Labs), Jonghum Kim (POSTECH), and Li Zhang (Soochow University). Labs & Teams: The He Lab at Duke collaborates with institutions globally, focusing on interdisciplinary approaches to combat crop diseases. Current projects include engineering climate-resilient plant immunity and microbiome-based disease prevention strategies.











