Functional Study of Brassinosteroid-Regulated Proteins

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Brassinosteroids (BRs) are plant steroid hormones, which play important roles in a wide range of physiological and developmental processes, including cell expansion, cell division, vascular differentiation, seed germination, photomorphogenesis, stress tolerance and disease resistance. Molecular genetic studies have identified several components of the BR signaling pathway, through which BRs bind the cell surface receptors to regulate nuclear gene expression. However, there are still gaps in our knowledge of the current BR signaling pathway. In particular, the substrates of the receptor kinases that transduce the BR signal from plasma membrane to cytoplasmic components remain unknown. Despite the success of genetic studies, the function of many genes cannot be discovered by forward genetic approaches, largely due to genetic redundancy. Therefore, alternative approaches are required to significantly advance our understanding of the BR signaling pathway. Thus, proteomic studies, which use two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis followed by mass spectrometry, have been used to identify BR-regulated proteins in Arabidopsis. The goal of this research is to characterize plasma membrane-localized BR-responsive proteins that are likely to mediate early BR signaling events. Functional studies of these proteins will advance our understanding of BR signal transduction and provide molecular tools for improving plant productivity. The broader impacts of this project include establishment of effective proteomic methods and training graduate students and postdocs to develop their research skills in molecular genetic and proteomic approaches for studying plant signal transduction. This project will also provide opportunities for undergraduate students and high school students to participate in modern life science research. Through teachers in local high schools and community colleges, undergraduate and high school students from under-represented minority groups will be identified. These students will be instilled with a fascination for scientific research through summer and academic year research experiences. This will have a positive influence on their choice of future career.