NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2021: Role of Transposable Elements and DNA Methylation on Immunity Gene Regulation and Diversification in Maize and Model Setaria viridis

该行动资助了 2021 财年 NSF 植物基因组生物学博士后研究奖学金。该奖学金支持该研究员在主办实验室的研究和培训计划，该研究员还提出了一项扩大生物学参与的计划。 Andrew Read 的这项奖学金的研究和培训计划的标题是“转座元件和 DNA 甲基化对玉米和模式单子叶植物狗尾草免疫基因调控和多样化的作用”。该奖学金的主办机构是明尼苏达大学，赞助科学家是内森·斯普林格博士。尽管植物能够抵御许多致病生物，但当病原体成功感染植物时，结果可能是毁灭性的。侵略性病原体可能导致森林树种丧失和农业系统作物损失。该项目将提高我们对个体植物如何感知和应对病原体的理解。此外，该研究还将研究允许植物种群快速进化出不同免疫基因组的遗传特征。与该领域的许多先前工作不同，该项目将重点关注禾本科植物的植物免疫力，禾本科植物包括许多我们最重要的主粮作物，如水稻、玉米和小麦。总而言之，这项研究将有助于这些重要作物的育种和提高抗病能力。这三个研究目标中的每一个都为更广泛的植物科学界提供了资源。在该项目的过程中，该研究员将从一组跨学科科学家那里获得技术和领导技能，并反过来在有意义的研究经历中指导几名本科生。此外，该研究员还将通过市场科学参与社区外展，这是一个由博士后和研究生领导的项目，旨在提供家庭友好的科学教育。 植物缺乏适应性免疫系统，而是编码一套多样化的快速进化的免疫基因。越来越清楚的是，转座元件 (TE) 和 DNA 甲基化影响这些免疫基因的进化和表达。对双子叶植物拟南芥模型的研究是我们理解 TE、DNA 甲基化和免疫基因生物学的基础，然而，我们许多最重要的农作物都是单子叶植物，这一类群在 1.25 亿年前就从双子叶植物中分化出来。该项目将结合不同玉米群体中 TE、DNA 甲基化和免疫基因关联的描述性研究，以及使用 CRISPR/Cas 基因敲除和单子叶植物狗尾草模型的转基因应激报告系对这些关联进行机械测试。这些数据和工具将有助于更好地了解单子叶植物对生物胁迫的反应，并为抗病品种的开发和部署提供信息。研究结果在提交给开放获取科学期刊时将在预印本服务器上共享。项目过程中产生的质粒将存放在 Addgene，转基因和编辑植物将可供使用。关键词：植物免疫、表观遗传学、转座元件、狗尾草、抗病性该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This action funds an NSF Plant Genome Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2021. The fellowship supports a research and training plan in a host laboratory for the Fellow who also presents a plan to broaden participation in biology. The title of the research and training plan for this fellowship to Andrew Read is “The role of transposable elements and DNA methylation on immunity gene regulation and diversification in maize and the model monocot Setaria viridis.” The host institution for the fellowship is the University of Minnesota and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. Nathan Springer.Although plants are able to fend off many disease-causing organisms, when a pathogen successfully infects a plant the results can be devastating. Aggressive pathogens can result in loss of tree species in forests and crop loss in agricultural systems. This project will improve our understanding of how individual plants sense and respond to pathogens. Additionally, the research will examine the genetic features that allow plant populations to rapidly evolve diverse sets of immunity genes. Unlike much prior work in this field, this project will focus on plant immunity in the grasses, a group of plants that includes many of our most important staple crops such as rice, corn, and wheat. Altogether, this research will empower the breeding and development of improved disease resistance in these important crops. Each of the three research objectives generates a resource for the broader plant science community. Over the course of the project, the Fellow will receive technical and leadership skills from a group of interdisciplinary scientists and will in turn mentor several undergraduates during meaningful research experiences. Further, the Fellow will engage in community outreach via Market Science, a program led by post-docs and graduate students to provide family-friendly science education. Plants lack an adaptive immune system and, instead, encode a diverse suite of rapidly evolving immunity genes. It is becoming increasingly clear that transposable elements (TEs) and DNA methylation influence the evolution and expression of these immunity genes. Research on the model dicot Arabidopsis thaliana has been foundational in our understanding of TEs, DNA methylation, and immunity gene biology, however many of our most important crop plants are monocot grasses, a group that diverged from dicots over 125 million years ago. This project will combine a descriptive study of TE, DNA methylation, and immunity gene associations in a diverse maize population with mechanistic testing of these associations using CRISPR/Cas gene knockouts and transgenic stress-reporter lines of the model monocot Setaria viridis. These data and tools will enable a better understanding of monocot responses to biotic stress and inform the development and deployment of disease resistant cultivars. Results of research will be shared on pre-print servers when submitted to open-access scientific journals. Plasmids generated over the course of the project will be deposited with Addgene and transgenic and edited plants will be made available.Keywords: plant immunity, epigenetics, transposable elements, Setaria viridis, disease resistanceThis award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.