Dissection of the ERECTA receptor-like kinase signaling pathway in Arabidopsis

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Elena Shpak; proposal IOS-843340; Dissection of the ERECTA receptor-like kinase signaling pathway in ArabidopsisPlant species vary tremendously in size. While California's coastal redwood tree can grow to a height of 350 feet, aquatic watermeal plants are so small that they resemble specks of cornmeal. When variations due to climate and nutrition are excluded, the mature size of plants is determined by their genes. To understand how genes control plant size, the researchers are studying the ERECTA family of genes which regulates division and differentiation of cells in developing plant organs. How proteins encoded by the ERECTA family genes function at a molecular level is not known. Preliminary research suggests that two novel proteins are involved in a cascade of events called the ERECTA signaling pathway. One of the proteins might control the stability of the ERECTA protein. To examine the role of these proteins in plant growth, the researchers will create and analyze plants where these proteins are dramatically reduced or absent. Another goal of the research is to investigate the function of these proteins and the regulation of ERECTA stability at the molecular level using a biochemical approach. Understanding how ERECTA functions might permit the design of plants with larger edible organs or fast-growing crops yielding high biomass for alternative fuels. ERECTA belongs to an important family of plant proteins called "receptor kinases", and determination of its signaling mechanism might help us understand many other signaling cascades. This project will provide a training platform for high school, undergraduate and graduate students, as well as career development of the new principal investigator. This project also includes integration of the research with efforts to promote science among middle and high school students, through participation in the Tennessee Junior Science and Humanities Symposium and the Tennessee Science Olympiad, and efforts to update and reorganize the undergraduate Plant physiology course.