The Vegetative Transcriptome of Arabidopsis Thaliana

在植物发育的不同时期产生的叶的形态、生理和生化组成以可预测的方式变化。当植物被诱导开花时，叶的形态和生理发生特别显著的变化。这一现象的分子基础将进行研究，通过进行基因组范围内的基因表达分析在不同位置的叶片上的开花和非开花植物的拟南芥。其表达根据芽发育的幼年期和成年期之间的过渡而变化的基因是特别感兴趣的，并且将通过比较正常植物与通过miR 156的组成型表达而“幼年化”的植物中的基因表达模式来鉴定。 mRNA丰度将使用AffyteATH1微阵列测定，而小RNA丰度将通过高通量合成测序技术测定。这些数据将通过http://mpss.udel.edu/at/上的项目特定页面访问，并将存放在NCBI的基因表达综合数据库（GEO）中，以便长期存储和传播。更广泛的影响：叶子是植物的主要光合器官，因此是地球上最重要的可再生能源来源。这项研究中获得的信息将扩展我们对植物基因调控网络的理解，并使合理设计叶片形态和生理以最大限度地提高植物性能成为可能。 重要的是，该项目还将为下一代植物科学家提供尖端功能基因组技术的培训。

The morphology, physiology, and biochemical composition of leaves produced at different times in the development of a plant changes in a predictable fashion. Particularly dramatic changes in leaf morphology and physiology occur when a plant is induced to flower. The molecular basis for this phenomenon will be studied by performing a genome-wide analysis of gene expression in leaves at different positions on the shoot of flowering and non-flowering plants of Arabidopsis thaliana. Genes whose expression changes in accordance with the transition between juvenile and adult stages of shoot development are of particular interest, and will be identified by comparing gene expression patterns in normal plants with plants that have been "juvenilized" by the constitutive expression of miR156. mRNA abundance will be determined using the Affymetrix ATH1 microarray, whereas small RNA abundance will be determined by high-throughput sequencing-by-synthesis technology. These data will be accessible via a project-specific page at http://mpss.udel.edu/at/ and will be deposited in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) at NCBI for long-term storage and dissemination.Broader Impacts: Leaves are the primary photosynthetic organ of a plant and are therefore the most important source of renewable energy on earth. The information obtained in this study will extend our understanding of plant gene regulatory networks and make it possible to rationally engineer leaf morphology and physiology to maximize plant performance. Importantly the project will also provide for the training of the next generation of plant scientists in cutting edge functional genomic technologies.