Arabidopsis 2010: Metabolomics: A Functional Genomics Tool for Deciphering Functions of Arabidopsis Genes in the Context of Metabolic and Regulatory Networks

该项目的长期目标是建立一个多机构的国际实验室联盟，将代谢组学作为一种新的功能基因组学工具，用于阐明拟南芥基因的功能。在这个为期两年的试点项目中，该联盟将进行研究，以测试使用代谢组学破译基因功能的可行性。该联盟将应用已建立的代谢物分析平台，共同检测约2000种代谢物，其中约900种是化学定义的。研究将调查拟南芥代谢组的稳健性，并确定将环境和发育对代谢组的影响最小化的条件。随后，该联盟将分析与功能未知基因中敲除等位基因相关的代谢组变化。这些代谢组学数据将与2010年平行项目中收集的其他功能基因组学数据（即转录组学、蛋白质组学和表型特征）相结合，这些分析数据将产生新的工具和资源，用于确定许多功能尚不明确的拟南芥基因的功能。该项目产生的所有信息将在www.metabolomics2010.bb.iastate.edu.Broader上提供。影响：该项目将验证代谢组学在破译基因功能方面的效用。这一进展将为拟南芥研究界提供资源，因为它将有助于阐明目前功能未知的基因的功能。参与该项目的实验室联盟将促进代谢组学作为功能基因组学工具的国际协调发展。该计划将促进本科、研究生和研究生研究人员在化学、生物化学、遗传学和生物信息学领域的研究培训，以解决后基因组科学中的生物学问题。

The long-term goal of this project is to establish a multiinstitutional, international consortium of labs that will develop metabolomics as a new functional genomics tool for elucidating the functions of Arabidopsis genes. In this 2-year pilot project the consortium will conduct the research that will test the feasibility of using metabolomics in deciphering functions of genes. The consortium will apply established metabolite-profiling platforms that together detect approximately 2,000 metabolites, of which about 900 are chemically defined. Studies will investigate the robustness of the Arabidopsis metabolome, and define conditions that minimize the environmental and developmental effects on the metabolome. Subsequently, the consortium will profile changes in the metabolome associated with knockout alleles in genes of unknown function. These metabolomics data will be integrated with additional functional genomics data (i.e., transcriptomic, proteomic and phenotypic characterizations) gathered in parallel 2010 projects, and in combination, these profiling data will generate new tools and resources for determining the function of the many Arabidopsis genes, whose functions are still undefined. All information generated from this project will be available at www.metabolomics2010.bb.iastate.edu.Broader Impacts: This project will validate the utility of metabolomics in deciphering the function of genes. This development will be a resource to the Arabidopsis research community in that it will facilitate the elucidation of functions for genes whose functions are currently unknown. The consortium of labs that are participating in this project will foster the coordinate international development of metabolomics as a tool in functional genomics. The project will facilitate the research-based training of undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate researchers at the interface between chemistry, biochemistry, genetics and bioinformatics to solve biological problems in postgenomic sciences.