Lichenized Fungi: A Themed Issue Dedicated to Academician Jiang-Chun Wei

Dear Colleagues,

Jiangchun Wei is a Professor of the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMCAS) and University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Academician of CAS, Former Deputy Director of IMCAS, and Founder of Chinese Lichenology. He pioneered lichen studies in China after being dispatched to the USSR in 1958 to fill a critical research gap. He was awarded Candidate of Biological Sciences (Ph.D. equivalent) by the Academy of Sciences of the USSR in 1962. Upon returning to China, he founded the Chinese lichenology discipline and established the nation’s inaugural lichen herbarium, now depositing over 160,000 specimens, most meticulously documented by his own hand. He was awarded Doctor of Biological Sciences by the Russian Academy of Sciences in 1995. He has conducted extensive research on lichen taxonomy and flora in China. His systematic revision of the family Umbilicariaceae (rock tripe lichens), based on integrative analysis, was internationally recognized and incorporated into Outline of the Ascomycete System (1993) and Dictionary of the Fungi (8th ed., 1995). He further validated this taxonomic system through nuclear rDNA sequencing, establishing the new order Umbilicariales. His seminal works include Umbilicariaceae in Asia, An Enumberation of Lichens in China, Enumeration of the Lichenized Fungi in China, and the Homologous Biosystematics of the Umbilicariaceae (Ascomycota) in the world, etc. He initiated and coordinated the nationwide compilation of the Cryptogamic Flora of China, serving as Editor-in-Chief of its fifth editorial board, authored more than 100 research papers and 10 monographs. Prof. Wei is the first Chinese lichenologist to conduct field studies on Mount Qomolangma and Antarctica. He co-authored Lichens of Xizang as part of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau Series and was awarded the CAS Special Prize for Advances in Science and Technology (1986). He led Antarctic terrestrial ecosystem research and was awarded Special Prize (1996) and Second Prize (1997) for Scientific and Technological Progress by the State Oceanic Administration of China with his Fildes Peninsula research findings. His group published the first genome of lichen-forming fungus Endocarpon pusillum and comparative transcriptome, revealing genes related to drought stress and laying an important foundation for the study of drought-resistant genes and the application of drought-resistant gene-transformed plants in the “desert biological carpet engineering” proposed by Prof. Wei. His group also established the first genetic manipulation system, greatly advancing the progress of lichen symbiotic molecular research. In addition, his group achieved the first deployment of lichen as space research materials and space biology research in China, advancing the study of lichen symbiotic stress resistance to a new level.

Through decades of unwavering commitment, Prof. Wei has fulfilled his mission to establish lichenology in China, paving the way for future scholars and earning the title “Father of Chinese Lichenology”. For over 70 years, Prof. Wei has dedicated his life to what he deems the greatest and most magnificent career: the relentless advancement of lichen science for his motherland. 

The Journal of Fungi is pleased to announce a Special Issue honoring Prof. Jiangchun Wei for his outstanding contributions to lichenology. The submissions can be on any topic relevant to lichenology.

Prof. Dr. Xinli Wei
Prof. Dr. Tao Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• lichenology
• biodiversity
• evolution