CAREER: Asymmetric Protein Localization and Control of Stomatal Lineage Cell Fate

在发育过程中，所有多细胞生物都面临着一系列类似的挑战：它们必须创造出一组不同的特化细胞类型，将这些细胞组织成功能组织，并维持干细胞库，以在其一生中补充这些组织。不对称细胞分裂，其中一个细胞分裂产生大小，位置和细胞成分不同的子细胞，是解决这些发育挑战的重要机制。虽然所有生物都必须解决产生不对称性的相同问题，但它们并不总是得出相同的答案。 该项目使用气孔（调节植物与大气之间CO2和H2O交换的表皮结构）的发育作为模型，以了解植物中如何产生不对称性。BASL蛋白，首先确定其在气孔发育中的作用，是一种植物特异性的细胞和组织的不对称性调节剂，并将用于确定植物细胞不对称分裂所需的一般成分。 气孔不仅为揭示植物的基本发育机制提供了框架，而且是陆地水循环和碳循环的重要组成部分。随着我们目睹全球气候的变化，了解植物控制气孔密度和模式的机制对于生产能够承受或减轻有害气候条件的粮食或燃料作物至关重要。这个职业生涯计划整合了遗传学和发育生物学的研究，教学和公共宣传。设计了一门新的课程，使学生成为各种来源的生物信息的消费者，包括原始文献和主流媒体。然后，与科技博物馆合作，学生将制作公开访问的科学文章。该技术有旨在促进成人和儿童科学素养的方案，这些方案覆盖了广泛的受众，包括一些服务最不足的学区的K-8学生。

During development, all multicellular organisms face a similar set of challenges: they must create a diverse set of specialized cell types, organize these cells into functional tissues, and maintain pools of stem cells to replenish those tissues throughout their lifetimes. Asymmetric cell division, in which one cell divides to create daughter cells that differ in size, location and cellular components, is an important mechanism for solving these developmental challenges. While all organisms must solve the same problem of generating asymmetries, they do not always come up with the same answer. This project uses the development of stomata (epidermal structures that regulate CO2 and H2O exchange between the plant and atmosphere) as a model to understand how asymmetries are generated in plants. BASL protein, first identified by its role in stomatal development, is a plant-specific regulator of cell and tissue asymmetries, and will be used to identify the general components required for plant asymmetric cell divisions. Stomata not only provide a framework to discover fundamental developmental mechanisms, they function as major components of terrestrial water and carbon cycles. As we witness changes in the global climate, understanding the mechanisms by which plants control the density and pattern of stomata will be essential to produce food or fuel crops that withstand or mitigate production of detrimental climatic conditions. This CAREER proposal integrates research, teaching and public outreach about genetics and developmental biology. A new course was designed to make students consumers of biological information from a variety of sources, including primary literature and the mainstream media. Then, in partnership with The Tech Museum, students will produce publicly accessible scientific articles. The Tech has programs designed to promote scientific literacy among the adults and children and these programs reach a broad audience including K-8 students in some of the most under-served school districts.