Evolution of the Land Plant Cell Wall: Functional Significance of Land Plant Polymers within the Charophycean Green Algae

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Michael R. Gretz and David S. DomozychIOS-0848071 Evolution of the Land Plant Cell Wall: Functional Significance of Land Plant Polymers within the Charophycean Green Algae The cell wall of land plants is an intricate network, constructed primarily of polysaccharides and proteins, that is intimately involved in the development of shape and form, and in essential functions such as maintenance of structural integrity, cell-cell communication, signal transduction, adhesion and physical/chemical defense. Land plants evolved approximately 470 million years ago from an ancestral pool of freshwater green algae known as the charophycean green algae (CGA). The overall goal of the project is to understand the function of CGA cell wall (CW) polymers critical to success of land plants, and to determine the evolutionary sequence that led to this result. The project will employ modern high-throughput glycomics methods, carbohydrate biochemistry, microscopy-based mapping of specific polymers, and examination of genetic data to determine commonalities between the CW of land plants and the CGA. The project will yield critical insight into the evolution of land plants from green algal ancestors, the evolution of CW polymers, and the role of specific CW polymers in the development of specific plant tissues. Delineation of the structure and function of CGA CW components will provide pivotal information necessary for understanding, and potentially modifying, land plant cell walls to facilitate biofuel production. The project will also contribute to identification of unique compounds and our overall understanding of the importance of CW components in agricultural crops, pharmaceuticals, food additives and other products. Student participants in this research will be afforded a unique perspective on international, cooperative, team-based scientific endeavors through interactions with the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. A dedicated outreach program to middle and elementary school students from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Northeastern New York will attract a new generation of young people to careers in biology and educate the public as to the everyday significance of products derived from cell walls.