RUI: Adaptive Significance of Circadian Rhythms in StomatalFunction and Photosynthesis

几乎所有的生物-从人类到豆类植物- 表现出“昼夜节律”， 这些功能的周期大约为24小时。 植物 也有这样的节奏。 例如，豆类植物， 在白天水平地离开（在一个位置，以赶上 太阳），但在晚上沿着茎垂直沿着拿着它们， 即使植物被关在室内， 一天中的任何时候都没有任何线索。 没有 人们知道这种有节奏的叶片运动是否对植物有任何影响， 很好，但这部分是因为没有人知道 植物的叶子沿着茎折叠， 不管是不是有节奏的。 研究人员将研究可能的好处， 植物的有节奏的运动，但在一个过程中，其功能是 比叶片运动更好理解。 叶子是相连的 通过称为气孔的小孔进入空气，这些气孔可以 打开和关闭。 众所周知，气孔在植物生长时打开， 植物可以进行光合作用（例如在白天）， 当光合作用不太可能发生时，它们就会关闭（在 例如，夜晚）。 除了这样的反应， 环境的变化，气孔也根据环境的变化而开闭。 一个内部时钟，周期约为24小时：他们 有昼夜节律。 到目前为止，还没有人系统地试图了解 昼夜节律影响气孔。 这个问题对于 基础科学有两个主要原因。 第一，理解 气孔反应不能真正完整， 对节奏元素的理解 第二，几个 实验室关心的是了解基本的工作原理， 生物钟驱动生物体的昼夜节律， 从人类到单细胞植物， 有希望揭示这个极其重要的 和难以捉摸的基本问题 也有潜在的实用 利益，因为气孔的研究总是有潜力， 农业应用。 气孔控制着 植物需要水，而水的利用是一个极其重要的 任何作物的特征，特别是在全球化的时代， 当育种和选择能够存活的植物时， 环境的变化具有非常重要的意义。 最后 研究将在本科院校进行，并将 让本科生广泛参与，提供一个有价值的 有机会教育和激励他们的职业生涯， 科学

Practically all organisms-from human beings to bean plants- exhibit "circadian rhythms," rhythmic fluctuations in all kinds functions that have a period of about twenty-four hours. Plants have such rhythms, too. Bean plants, for example, hold their leaves horizontally during the day (in a position to catch the sun), but hold them vertically along the stem at night, and they will continue this rhythmic movement even if plants are kept in constant light, with no clues as to what time of day it is. No one knows whether this rhythmic leaf movement does the plant any good, but that is partly because no one knows what benefit the plant might get from having its leaves folded along the stem, whether rhythmically or not. The investigators will examine the possible benefit to the plant of a rhythmic movement, but in a process whose function is much better understood than leaf movements. Leaves are connected to the air by small pores called stomata, and these pores can open and close. It is well known that the stomata open when the plants can photosynthesize (during the day, for example), and that they close when photosynthesis is unlikely to take place (at night, for example). In addition to responses like these to environmental changes, stomata also open and close according to an internal clock with a period of about twenty-four hours: they have circadian rhythms. Until now, no one has tried systematically to understand how circadian rhythms affect stomata. This question is important to basic science for two major reasons. First, understanding of stomatal responses cannot be really complete without an understanding of the rhythmic element. Second, several laboratories are concerned with understanding the basic working of the clock that drives circadian rhythms in organisms ranging from humans to single-celled plants, and any circadian research has some promise for shedding light on this extremely important and elusive basic question. There are also potential practical benefits, because research on stomata always has potential for agricultural applications. Stomata control the rate at which plants use water, and water use is an extremely important characteristic of any crop, particularly in an era of global change when breeding and selecting of plants that can survive a changed environment take on immense importance. Finally, the research will be done at an undergraduate institution and will involve undergraduate students extensively, providing a valuable opportunity to educate and inspire them for the career in science.