CAREER: Understanding Plastoglobule Lipid Droplet Function Through the ABC1 Atypical Protein Kinases

这个项目试图揭示植物细胞中最丰富的质球脂滴酶是如何促进逆境耐受性和发育过渡的。该项目的成果将阐明我们对所有植物共有的逆境耐受机制中这一鲜为人知的组成部分的理解，这可能对农业生产力和粮食安全产生深远影响。将提供多种教育计划，包括为本科生提供的REU式植物科学培训计划，为公共宣传活动提供的材料，如一年一度的植物魅力日，以及为研究生提供的蛋白质组学教学模块。这套计划将产生长期影响，为本科生开发新的教育机会，增强研究生的课程内容，并促进公众对植物对社会的贡献的欣赏，同时促进PI学员的职业发展。植物叶绿体的质球脂滴被认为是适应环境压力反应的主要协调者。然而，对浆球功能的理解仍然局限于假设的模型，缺乏实验验证的分子功能。本项目的目的是阐明所有六个定位于塑料球体的ABC1Ks在塑料球体功能中的中心作用。这些ABC1K是质球中含量最丰富的酶，被认为是通过对质球蛋白质组的磷酸化调节来发挥质球功能的主要调节器。该项目将表征每个ABC1K的蛋白激酶活性，确定质球的磷酸调节网络，剖析ABC1K独特的N-末端和C-末端侧翼的功能相关性，并揭示ABC1K的生物学功能。这些目标将通过一系列异源表达的ABC1K的体外激酶分析和对敲除和过度表达突变株的表型研究来实现，包括大规模的磷蛋白质组和脂体学研究。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project seeks to uncover how members of the most abundant enzymes of plastoglobule lipid droplets of plant cells operate to promote stress tolerance and developmental transitions. Outcomes from this project will illuminate our understanding of this poorly understood component of the stress tolerance machinery common to all plants, with potentially far-reaching impacts for agricultural productivity and food security. Multiple educational programs will be provided, including an REU-style training program in the plant sciences for undergraduate students, materials for public outreach events such as the annual Fascination of Plants Day, and a proteomics instructional module for graduate students. This suite of programs will result in long-term impacts that develop novel educational opportunities for undergraduates, enhance course content for graduate students, and promote an appreciation among the general public of plants’ contribution to society, while fostering the career development of the PI’s trainees.Plastoglobule lipid droplets of plant chloroplasts are believed to be a major orchestrator of adaptive responses to environmental stresses. Yet, understanding of plastoglobule function remains limited to hypothetical models, lacking experimentally validated molecular functions. It is the objective of this project to elucidate the central role of all six plastoglobule-localized ABC1 protein kinases (ABC1Ks) in plastoglobule function. These ABC1Ks are the most abundant enzymes of the plastoglobule and are thought to serve as master regulators of plastoglobule function through phospho-regulation of the plastoglobule proteome. This project will characterize the protein kinase activity of each ABC1K, define the phospho-regulatory network of plastoglobules, dissect the functional relevance of the unique N- and C- terminal flanks of ABC1Ks, and unravel the biological functions of the ABC1Ks. These goals will be accomplished through a series of in vitro kinase assays with heterologously expressed ABC1Ks and phenotypic investigations of knock-out and over-expressor mutant lines, including a large-scale phosphoproteomic and lipidomic study.This 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.