Jonathan F. Wendel

Jonathan F. Wendel is an American evolutionary biologist and botanist known for his research on plant genome evolution, polyploidy, and the genetics and evolution of cotton (Gossypium). He is Distinguished Professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology at Iowa State University. His research has contributed to understanding genome duplication, speciation, and the evolutionary consequences of polyploidy in plants.

Education Wendel received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Michigan in 1976. He then attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he earned a Master of Science in 1980 and a PhD in 1983.

Career Following completion of his PhD in 1983, Wendel worked as a geneticist with the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service at North Carolina State University from 1983 to 1986.

He joined Iowa State University in 1986 as an assistant professor of botany. He was promoted to associate professor in 1991 and full professor in 1996. In 2012, he was appointed Distinguished Professor at Iowa State University. He served as chair of the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology from 2003 to 2017 and previously served as interim chair from 2002 to 2003.

Research Wendel's research focuses on plant genomic and phenotypic diversity, with particular emphasis on polyploidy (whole-genome duplication). Much of his work examines the evolutionary consequences of allopolyploidy, in which two diverged diploid genomes become united within a single nucleus. His studies have investigated genomic processes associated with allopolyploid formation and evolution, including intergenomic gene conversion, homoeolog expression bias, duplicate gene co-regulation, expression dominance, biased genome fractionation, and the evolutionary trajectories of duplicated genetic networks.

A major focus of his research has been the cotton genus (Gossypium), which he has used as a model system to examine genome doubling, genome organization, gene expression divergence, and the genetic basis of domestication and crop traits. His work has contributed to understanding how duplicated genes and regulatory networks evolve following genome merger and doubling.

In addition to cotton, Wendel has conducted research on other plant groups, including maize (Zea mays), rice (Oryza), bamboos, and baobabs (Adansonia), using molecular and genomic approaches to study phylogenetic relationships, polyploidy, and plant diversification.

Honors and awards

1990 – Margaret Menzel Award for Best Paper, Botanical Society of America 1999 – Outstanding Achievement in Research, Iowa State University 2005 – Master Teacher Award, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University 2009 – Outstanding Achievement in Departmental Leadership, Iowa State University 2010 – Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science 2012 – Cotton Biotechnology Award, Cotton Incorporated 2015 – Distinguished Fellow, Botanical Society of America 2015 – Distinguished Scholar, Crop Science Society of America 2019 – Leverhulme Professorship, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Queen Mary University of London 2019 – Fulbright Senior Scholar, Spain 2021 – Researcher of the Year, International Cotton Advisory Committee 2023 – Elected Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2023 – Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences 2024 – Cotton Genetics Research Award, National Cotton Council of America

Selected publications

11 : 792 https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2020.00792 https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202003634 42: 1-33 https://doi.org/10.1080/07352689.2022.2156061 26: 221 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-025-11360-z