CAREER: Defining the evolutionary trajectory of CAM photosynthesis in Portulacineae (Caryophyllales)

职业：定义马齿苋亚科（石竹目）CAM 光合作用的进化轨迹

• 批准号: 1252901
• 负责人: Erika Edwards
• 金额: $ 80万
• 依托单位: Brown University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-02-15 至 2017-10-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1252901&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Defining; evolutionary; trajectory; CAM

Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM) refers to a set of changes to the photosynthetic pathway that allows plants to grow more efficiently under conditions of drought, high temperatures, and/or low atmospheric CO2. It is biochemically similar to another modification, C4 photosynthesis, but requires fewer structural changes to leaf tissue. We know a great deal about the evolutionary history of the C4 syndrome, and this knowledge has informed efforts to genetically engineer this photosynthetic improvement into crops such as rice. We know virtually nothing about CAM evolution- its genetic underpinnings, its relationship to other plant traits, and whether it is equally likely to evolve in all plant lineages. Here the PI proposes to significantly increase our understanding of how CAM evolves, utilizing a comparative approach and focusing on one horticulturally important plant lineage known for drought tolerance, which includes the cacti. The project involves extensive genetic and ecological analyses, and will also develop a new metric to efficiently screen species for low level CAM activity. Because this is a CAREER award, all research goals of the project are tightly interwoven into an innovative education program involving undergraduates, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers at Brown University, and graduate students from Peru. In addition to the basic scientific understanding that will be gained, this project should yield valuable insight into the use of CAM photosynthesis for engineering more drought-resistant crops. Moreover it will build a foundational bridge of scientific collaboration between the United States and Peru, and contribute significantly to capacity building and scientific training in a developing nation.

碎屑酸代谢（CAM）是指光合途径的一系列变化，使植物在干旱，高温和/或低大气CO2的条件下更有效地生长。 它在生化上与另一种修饰C4光合作用相似，但需要更少的结构变化对叶片组织。我们对C4综合征的进化史了解了很多知识，并且这些知识已经启发了遗传来培养这种光合作用改善水稻等农作物（例如水稻）的努力。我们几乎不知道CAM进化 - 其遗传基础，与其他植物特征的关系以及在所有植物谱系中是否同样有可能进化。在这里，PI提出，利用一种比较方法，并专注于一种以干旱耐受性而闻名的园艺植物谱系，以大大提高我们对CAM演变的理解，其中包括仙人掌。该项目涉及广泛的遗传和生态分析，还将开发一个新的指标，以有效筛选低水平CAM活性的物种。因为这是一个职业奖，所以该项目的所有研究目标都与布朗大学的本科生，研究生和博士后研究人员以及秘鲁的研究生紧密地交织在一起。除了将获得的基本科学理解外，该项目还应对使用CAM光合作用进行工程更耐干旱的农作物产生宝贵的见解。此外，它将在美国和秘鲁之间建立科学合作的基础桥梁，并为发展中国家的能力建设和科学培训做出重大贡献。