ALD1-Dependent Signaling in the Plant Defense Response

植物对局部感染的反应是通过产生分子，这些分子可以传播到植物的不同部分，并启动一种多方面的防御计划。这一计划使该工厂能够更好地抵御未来的感染。该实验室之前的工作发现了一种名为ALD1的基因，它对激活防御计划非常重要。ALD1编码一种蛋白质，可以改变某些氨基酸的化学组成。这项研究旨在验证这样一种假设，即修饰的氨基酸本身就是在植物中传播并激活防御程序的分子，或者这些氨基酸是这一过程的中间步骤。目前的工作寻求识别与ALD1一起作用于激活防御的基因，并识别可能的修饰氨基酸和/或其他负责触发防御的代谢物。这项工作还试图确定ALD1是否在不同类型的植物中具有类似的功能。智力价值：这项工作将成为了解植物如何防御疾病的模型。特别是，将确定防御反应途径的其他成分，将确定潜在的新信号分子(S)的性质和/或身份，并将探索不同植物防御功能的共性。广泛影响：了解植物激活防御的途径可以使作物具有强大的抗病能力。植物即使不是更多，也会产生数百种代谢物，但关于它们在信号通路和植物保护中所扮演的角色的信息有限。这项工作可以使人们更好地了解某些代谢物的作用，并开发出更好地了解它们的作用的方法。该项目的一个重要成果将是建立一个关于植物防御反应期间诱导的代谢物的公共数据库。该项目将为一名博士后学者、一名或多名本科生和至少一名高中生提供大量培训机会。这个实验室已经培养了10名本科生，其中大多数人都读了研究生。其中包括8名妇女，其中4人是代表不足的少数群体(非裔美国人和西班牙裔)的成员。目前，作为NSF资助的另一个项目的一部分，一名高中生参与了重要的研究活动。作为这项研究计划的一部分，该实验室将继续积极向代表性不足的群体成员和高中生提供研究机会。

Plants respond to a local infection by producing molecules that can travel to different parts of the plant and set in motion a multi-faceted program of defense. This program enables the plant to better fight off future infections. Previous work from this laboratory identified a gene called ALD1 that is important for activating the defense program. ALD1 codes for a protein that can alter the chemical make up of certain amino acids. This research aims to test the hypothesis that modified amino acids are themselves the molecules that travel in plants and activate the defense program or that these amino acids are an intermediate step in the process. The current work seeks to identify genes that act together with ALD1 to activate defenses and to identify possible modified amino acids and/or other metabolites responsible for triggering defenses. The work also seeks to ascertain whether ALD1 has a similar function in different types of plants. Intellectual merit: This work will serve as a model for understanding how plants defend themselves against disease. In particular, additional components of the defense response pathway will be identified, the properties and/or identity of a potential novel signal molecule(s) will be determined and the generality of defense functions in different plants will be explored.Broader impacts: Knowledge of the pathway through which plants activate defenses could enable the development of crop plants with robust disease resistance. Plants make hundreds if not more metabolites, but information about their roles in signaling pathways and plant protection is limited. This work could lead to a greater understanding of the role of some metabolites and to the development of approaches to better understand their actions. An important outcome of the project will be the creation of a public database of metabolites induced during the plant defense response. This project will involve significant training opportunities for a postdoctoral scholar, one or more undergraduates and at least one high school student. Ten undergraduates have been trained in this laboratory, most of who have gone on to graduate school. These include eight women, four of whom are members of underrepresented minorities (African-American and Hispanic). Currently, one high school student is involved in significant research activities as part of another NSF-funded project. The lab will continue aggressively offering research opportunities to members of underrepresented groups and high school students as part of this research plan.