Regulation of flower development by ERECTA family receptors and EPFL ligands.

ERECTA 家族受体和 EPFL 配体对花发育的调节。

基本信息

批准号：
2016756
负责人：
Elena Shpak
金额：
$ 85.73万
依托单位：
University of Tennessee Knoxville
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
2020
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2020-09-01 至 2024-08-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2016756&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
Regulation flower development ERECTA family

项目摘要

A remarkable variety of plant shapes are observed in nature. Wasp-shaped orchid flowers, gigantic stinking corpse lilies, towering sequoia trees, and massive baobabs are just a few conspicuous examples. While there are a limited number of building blocks that make up a plant (a root, an internode, a leaf, and a flower), the shape and size of these organs vary greatly, giving rise to the prolific variation in plant appearance. Driven by natural selection, the form of an organ is directly related to its function. The shape of a flower promotes effective pollination, and the size and shape of leaves allow for optimal photosynthesis with minimal harm by heat and drought. An important driver of organ shape is establishment of an active growth region and of boundary zones where cells divide very slowly. This project investigates molecular mechanisms controlling the shape of flower organs and formation of boundary zones during various stages of flower development. It examines the initiation and spacing of ovules, which will contribute to understanding how the number of seeds is established within a fruit. To support education, a website will be created with links to high-quality videos aimed at undergraduate level Plant Physiology courses. The proposed research will also promote education through the training of postdoctoral, graduate, undergraduate, and high school students. A special effort will be made to attract minorities to the research program. The shape of a plant depends on the timing of cell proliferation, the extent of cell elongation, and the establishment of boundaries. These processes rely on coordinated cell behavior and require cell-to-cell communications. One of the key signaling pathways regulating plant morphogenesis is initiated by the ERECTA family (ERf) of receptors and their extracellular ligands, EPFLs. This pathway is important for morphogenesis of all aboveground organs; however, the specific developmental processes that are targeted are not known. This project will study ERf-EPFL signaling during morphogenesis of flowers, a complex developmental program requiring numerous avenues of coordinated differentiation and proliferation of cells. It will explore the function of ERf-EPFLs during formation of a variety of flower structures including ovules, integuments, and anthers with the goal of identifying processes similarly controlled in different tissues. The role of ERf-EPFL signaling will be studied in specification of boundaries between outgrowing structures and in modification of auxin transport during outgrowth of protrusions. The experimental design includes genetic studies, imaging, next-generation sequencing, and biochemical approaches. Taken together, the proposed activities have the potential to uncover novel molecular mechanisms controlling morphogenesis in plants.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

在自然界中观察到了各种各样的植物形状。黄蜂形状的兰花、巨大的臭尸百合、高耸的红杉树和巨大的猴面包树只是几个明显的例子。虽然构成植物的构件（根、节间、叶子和花）数量有限，但这些器官的形状和大小差异很大，导致植物外观的大量变化。在自然选择的驱动下，器官的形态与其功能直接相关。花的形状可以促进有效的授粉，叶子的大小和形状可以实现最佳的光合作用，同时将高温和干旱造成的损害降到最低。器官形状的一个重要驱动因素是细胞分裂非常缓慢的活跃生长区域和边界区域的建立。该项目研究在花朵发育的各个阶段控制花器官形状和边界区域形成的分子机制。它检查胚珠的起始和间距，这将有助于了解果实中种子数量的形成方式。为了支持教育，将创建一个网站，其中包含针对本科水平植物生理学课程的高质量视频的链接。拟议的研究还将通过博士后、研究生、本科生和高中生的培训来促进教育。我们将做出特别努力来吸引少数群体参与该研究计划。植物的形状取决于细胞增殖的时间、细胞伸长的程度和边界的建立。这些过程依赖于协调的细胞行为，并且需要细胞间的通信。调节植物形态发生的关键信号通路之一是由 ERECTA 受体家族 (ERf) 及其胞外配体 EPFL 启动。该途径对于所有地上器官的形态发生都很重要。然而，具体的目标发育过程尚不清楚。该项目将研究花形态发生过程中的 ERf-EPFL 信号传导，这是一个复杂的发育程序，需要多种途径协调细胞分化和增殖。它将探索 ERf-EPFL 在包括胚珠、珠被和花药在内的多种花结构形成过程中的功能，目的是识别不同组织中类似控制的过程。 ERf-EPFL 信号传导的作用将在突出结构之间的边界规范和突起生长过程中生长素运输的修改中进行研究。实验设计包括遗传学研究、成像、下一代测序和生化方法。总而言之，拟议的活动有可能揭示控制植物形态发生的新分子机制。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。