Founded in 1998, the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center is home to over 130 scientists who are conducting fundamental research with short-, mid- or long-term applied goals.  Research team leaders, referred to as Principal Investigators, have strong interdisciplinary research skills with diverse training and are committed to collaborations between research groups within the Danforth Center, among the Danforth Center Alliance, and with researchers across the globe.

Dr. Brad Barbazuk: Bioinformatics-genome architecture, function and evolution

Dr. Roger Beachy: Virus infection and control of virus disease; regulation of gene expression

Dr. Ed Cahoon: Seed oil composition, fatty acid synthesis

Dr. Claude Fauquet: Cassava improvement, virus biology, virus resistance

Dr. Eliot Herman:Oil and protein composition of soybean seed

Dr. Jan Jaworski: Oil seed biotechnology

Dr. Joe Jez: Natural product synthesis and plant hormone signaling

Dr. Toni Kutchan: Molecular genetics of natural product formation

Dr. Mark Running: Meristem function , flower development and lipid posttranslational modification

Dr. Daniel Schachtman: Root biology: mineral uptake, root sensing of drought and nutrients

Dr. Dilip Shah: Plant-microbe interactions, plant defense proteins

Dr. Thomas Smith: Protein structure and function

Dr. Chris Taylor: Parasitism of the root by nematodes and bacteria

Dr. Sam Wang:  signaling and metabolic functions of membrane lipids

Dr. Terry Woodford-Thomas: Plant-based vaccines

Dr. Yiji Xia: Defense signaling

Dr. Liming Xiong: Stress signal transduction

Dr. Oliver Yu: Isoflavonoid biosynthesis