Division Plane Orientation in Plant Cells

植物有两种构造形体的方法：分裂和扩张。因此，了解细胞分裂，特别是通过正确的分裂平面定位介导的细胞分裂与分化之间的协调，对了解植物发育至关重要。此外，分裂面定向对所有真核细胞都至关重要，植物是研究这一过程的有益模式生物。关于控制植物分裂面正确定向的因素知之甚少，然而，最近的数据表明，植物分裂位点的顺序修饰对于细胞分裂的最终正确定向至关重要。本研究鉴定了拟南芥和玉米中控制分裂面取向的蛋白。实验方法包括活细胞成像、生物化学、反向和正向遗传学。本研究的预期结果是在细胞周期的时间背景下和其他蛋白质的相互作用网络中鉴定植物分裂位点相互作用组。这一结果将具有重要的积极影响，因为阐明植物分裂面取向的过程将为通过控制细胞分裂面来修饰植物提供新的工具和资源，从而可能导致下一代作物植物的改良。更广泛的影响该项目侧重于对植物细胞分裂动力学的基本理解，具有长期应用于农作物的潜力，也将为怀俄明州更广泛社区的学生提供有用的培训和教育机会。该项目通过为怀俄明大学的本科生和社区学院转校生提供学生研讨会，将研究与培训和教育结合起来，这些学生将本项目中描述的发育遗传学和成像资源作为培训工具。学生将开始对选定的突变体的研究，作为分子生物学课程标准实验课程的一部分，然后将有机会申请美国国家科学基金会怀俄明州EPSCoR项目的竞争性学生资助，用于夏季研究。社区大学的学生将被提供为期两天的拟南芥成像和遗传学研讨会，以补充已经建立的旨在向社区大学学生介绍怀俄明大学本科生机会的活动。该项目旨在通过开发一个由女性首席研究员领导的研究项目来扩大代表性不足的群体的参与，该项目旨在利用怀俄明大学的内部和外部资助项目，吸引新的科学家进入国家需要的高优先领域（农业和植物科学）。具体来说，研究者将在一年一度的妇女和女童科学日上接待七年级和八年级的女孩。当学生们进入高中科学课程时，将鼓励他们通过Facebook与研究者交流。除了通过同行评议的出版物和在国家会议上的报告传播项目成果来增进科学和技术的理解外，该项目还将通过提高植物分裂地点定位的生物学知识来造福社会。从长远来看，这项研究的成果将转化为作物植物的新发现并加以补充。

Plants have two methods for establishing a body plan: division and expansion. Therefore, understanding cell division, particularly the coordination between cell division and differentiation mediated by correct orientation of the division plane, is crucial to understanding plant development. Moreover, division plane orientation is vital for all eukaryotic cells, and plants serve as useful model organisms for studying this process. Little is known about the factors that control proper orientation of the division plane in plants, however, recent data suggests that sequential modification of the plant division site is essential for the final proper orientation of cell division. This research identifies the proteins responsible for controlling division plane orientation in both Arabidopsis thaliana and maize. The experimental approaches include live cell imaging, biochemistry, and reverse and forward genetics. The expected outcome of this research is identification of a plant division site interactome placed within the temporal context of the cell cycle and within the interacting network of other proteins. This outcome will have important positive impact because elucidating the process of plant division plane orientation will provide new tools and resources for modifying plants through control of cell division planes which may lead to next generation improvements in crop plants.Broader ImpactsThis project, focusing on fundamental understanding of cell division dynamics in plants, has the potential for long-term application to crop plants and will also provide useful training and educational opportunities for students in the broader Wyoming community. The project integrates research with training and education by providing student workshops for undergraduates and community college transfer students at University of Wyoming that use developmental genetics and imaging resources described in this project as training tools. Students will initiate research on selected mutants as part of a standard laboratory course in the Molecular Biology curriculum, and then will have the opportunity to apply for competitive student funding from the NSF Wyoming EPSCoR program for summer research. Community college students will be offered two-day workshops in A. thaliana imaging and genetics to supplement already established activities designed to introduce community college students to opportunities as undergrads at University of Wyoming. The project aims to broaden participation of under-represented groups through development of a research program headed by a female principal investigator with the goal of attracting new scientists into careers in high-priority areas of national need (agriculture and plant sciences), making use of internally and externally funded programs at University of Wyoming. Specifically the investigator will host 7th and 8th grade girls at an Annual Women and Girls in Science Day. Students will be encouraged to communicate with the investigator via Facebook as they enter the high school science curriculum. In addition to enhancing scientific and technological understanding by dissemination of project results through peer-reviewed publications and presentations at national conferences, the project will benefit society by advancing knowledge of the biology of plant division site orientation. In the long-term, the outcomes of the research will be translated to and complemented by new findings in crop plants.