GENETICS OF AGAMOUS ACTION IN ARABISOPSIS DEVELOPMENT

拟议实验的长期目标是生产， 模式的分子和遗传模型的测试和完善 花发育过程中的形成。 这将通过深入研究来完成 关键同源基因的遗传学和分子遗传学 植物拟南芥花的发育。 这是 AGAMOUS基因，其表型是六个雄蕊的同源异型转化 发现于野生型花至六瓣，以及通常发现的子房中 在花的中心形成一圈萼片。 此外，野生 AGAMOUS 型基因似乎负责调节 几个花部分的细胞分裂的数量和模式。自建厂以来 发育仅由受调节的细胞分裂的两个过程组成 和模式化的细胞分化（与动物不同，其中细胞 移民和母亲信息发挥着重要作用），了解 AGAMOUS 基因的活性将是理解的重要一步 植物中模式的形成。 由于这个过程看起来简单得多 植物与动物相比，可以预见的是，植物的许多方面 植物的发展不仅本身就令人感兴趣，而且 也可以作为更复杂的发育过程的模型 动物。 AGAMOUS基因已被克隆，其蛋白质产物共享 与一类已知的转录调节因子具有显着的同源性 脊椎动物和面包酵母中。 人类同源物是血清反应 因子，是人类 c-fos 的关键转录调节因子 癌基因。 这奠定了拟议研究与 由异常胚胎模式引起的出生缺陷的健康问题 的形成和致癌作用。 具体目标是研究 AGAMOUS 的作用及其与一系列其他同源异构体的相互作用 基因。 拟议的实验包括对这个地方的仔细研究 AG 作用和表达的时间，通过 RNA 原位分析， AG 蛋白的抗体定位，以及报告基因的表达 基因。 所有这些都将在野生型和各种突变体中完成 背景。 此外，还进行了一系列空间和空间实验 计划中的基因暂时错误表达，以及遗传镶嵌研究。 最后对新发现的AG同系物家族进行详细研究 将在拟南芥基因组中进行，以了解 现在已知许多其他植物基因与 AGAMOUS 相关，因此 人类血清反应因子。

The long term objective of the proposed experiments is the production, testing and refinement of a molecular and genetic model for pattern formation in flower development. This will be done by studying in depth the genetics and molecular genetics of a key homeotic gene in the development of flowers of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This is the AGAMOUS gene, whose phenotype is the homeotic conversion of the six stamens found in wild type flowers to six petals, and of the ovary normally found in the center of the flower into a whorl of sepals. In addition, the wild type AGAMOUS gene appears to be responsible for the regulation of the amount and pattern of cell division in several flower parts. Since plant development consists only of the two processes of regulated cell division and patterned cellular differentiation (unlike animals, in which cell migration and maternal information play major roles), understanding the activities of the AGAMOUS gene will be a major step in understanding pattern formation in plants. Since this process appears much simpler in plants than in animals, it is to be expected that many aspects of development in plants will not only be of interest in their own right, but also serve as models for the more complex developmental processes of animals. The AGAMOUS gene is already cloned, and its protein product shares substantial homology with a class of transcriptional regulators known in vertebrates and in baker's yeast. The human homologue is Serum Response Factor, which is a key transcriptional regulator of the human c-fos oncogene. This underlies the relatedness of the proposed studies to the health problems of birth defects, caused by abnormal embryonic pattern formation, and of carcinogenesis. The specific aims are to study the action of AGAMOUS and its interaction with a series of additional homeotic genes. Among the proposed experiments are the careful study of the place and time of AG action and expression, by in situ analysis of RNA, by antibody localization of the AG protein, and by expression of reporter genes. All of this will be done in wild type and various mutant backgrounds. In additional a series of experiments to spatially and temporally misexpress the gene are planned, as are genetic mosaic studies. Finally, a detailed study of the newly-discovered family of AG homologues in the Arabidopsis genome will be performed, to learn the activity of the many other plant genes now known to be related to AGAMOUS, and thus to human Serum Response Factor.