Deciphering Maize Floral Regulatory Networks

破译玉米花卉监管网络

• 批准号: 249903-2012
• 负责人: Colasanti, Joseph
• 金额: $ 3.42万
• 依托单位: University of Guelph
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2012-01-01 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=514496
• 关键词: Deciphering; Maize; Floral; Regulatory; Networks

For nearly a century plant biologists have been trying to decipher the mechanisms that control flowering time in plants. Until recently the nature of the signals that cause plants to flower remained a complete mystery. Early researchers discovered that a flower-inducing substance is synthesized in leaves and then transported a long distance to the central shoot of the plant to a region of stem cells where the actual flowers are made. My research uses the tools of molecular biology, biochemistry and genomics to better understand the nature of the flowering process. Our research revolves around the study of the maize INDETERMINATE1 gene, or ID1, which is critically important for flowering. Maize plants with a normal copy of this gene flower at the usual time, whereas maize with a mutated ID1 gene flowers very late and produces defective flowers. We isolated the ID1 gene and characterized it using molecular techniques. ID1 encodes a zinc finger transcription factor protein that acts in leaves as a master regulator of other genes, suggesting that ID1 causes flowering in maize by turning other genes 'on' or 'off' and controlling a the long distance leaf signal. There are three main goals of this proposal: 1) to characterize the molecular, biochemical and physiological components in plants that make up the leaf signals that specify time to flower; 2) to identify genes that are controlled by the ID1 gene, and 3) to work out the basic molecular mechanisms, as typified by studying ID1 activity, used by higher organisms to regulate gene function. Ultimately we would like to identify the biochemical components and metabolic changes that affect the flowering process. Moreover, we will better understand how plants interpret environmental signals so that they flower at the correct time. Discovering how ID1 controls flowering time could lead to a better understanding of flowering in maize as well its agriculturally important relatives such as wheat rice, sorghum, sugarcane and various 'energy grasses' such as Miscanthus. The ability to control time to flowering is of vital importance to agriculture because plants coordinate flowering for optimal seed and fruit production. Therefore understanding flowering will help to improve the productivity of vital crop plants.

近一个世纪的植物生物学家一直在试图破译控制植物开花时间的机制。直到最近，导致植物开花的信号的性质仍然是一个完全的谜。早期的研究人员发现，在叶子中合成了一种诱导花的物质，然后将植物的中央芽带到植物的中央芽到制作实际花的干细胞区域。我的研究使用分子生物学，生物化学和基因组学的工具来更好地了解开花过程的性质。我们的研究围绕着对玉米不确定1基因或ID1的研究，这对于开花至关重要。玉米在通常的时间植物，具有这种基因花的正常副本，而玉米的玉米很晚就会产生突变的ID1基因花，并产生缺陷的花朵。我们分离了ID1基因，并使用分子技术对其进行了表征。 ID1编码一个锌指转录因子蛋白，该蛋白作为其他基因的主要调节剂在叶子中起作用，这表明ID1通过将其他基因打开“ ON”或“ OFF”并控制长距离叶子信号来引起玉米中的开花。该提案的主要目标有三个主要目标：1）表征构成指定开花时间的植物中的分子，生化和生理成分； 2）鉴定由ID1基因控制的基因，以及3）以研究ID1活性为代表的基本分子机制，该机制由较高生物体用于调节基因功能。最终，我们想确定影响开花过程的生化成分和代谢变化。此外，我们将更好地了解植物如何解释环境信号，以便它们在正确的时间开花。发现ID1如何控制开花时间可能会导致对玉米开花的更好理解，以及其农业重要的亲戚，例如小麦大米，高粱，甘蔗和各种“能量草”，例如芒果。控制时间开花的能力对于农业至关重要，因为植物协调开花以最佳种子和水果产生。因此，了解开花将有助于提高重要作物的生产率。