Comparative organellar genomics in heterotrophic plants

异养植物比较细胞器基因组学

• 批准号: 326439-2011
• 负责人: Stefanovic, Sasa
• 金额: $ 2.26万
• 依托单位: University of Toronto
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2011-01-01 至 2012-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=481447
• 关键词: Comparative; organellar; genomics; heterotrophic; plants

Some plants steal nutrients and/or water from regular green plants and consequently have reduced or completely lost their ability to photosynthesize. We study plastid genomes in a variety of these so-called heterotrophic plants (commonly known as parasitic plants). Comparative analyses of the plastomes along the full trophic spectrum, from autotrophy to mixotrophy to full heterotrophy, will allow us to assess the degree to which genomic changes take place prior to complete loss of photosynthesis, and to dissect the evolutionary pressures on plastomes exerted by other plastid metabolic functions. Many groups of heterotrophic plants arose separately from their respective photosynthetic relatives. The basic idea we take advantage of in this proposal is that each of those lineages of heterotrophs represents an independent natural genetic experiment whose plastids and genes have evolved under relaxed functional constraints; therefore, each represents a unique opportunity to study genome function and evolution. Given the difficulties or even the impossibility of reverse genetic approach in this system, study of multiple natural plastid 'mutants' will contribute to our deeper understanding of photosynthesis, its molecular components, and their interaction.

一些植物从普通绿色植物中窃取养分和/或水分，因此降低或完全失去了光合作用的能力。我们研究了各种所谓的异养植物(通常称为寄生植物)中的叶绿体基因组。对从自养到混合营养再到完全异养的全营养范围内的质体进行比较分析，将使我们能够评估在光合作用完全丧失之前基因组发生变化的程度，并剖析其他叶绿体代谢功能对质体施加的进化压力。许多异养植物群是从它们各自的光合作用亲缘植物中分离出来的。我们在这一提议中利用的基本思想是，每一种异养生物都代表着一个独立的自然遗传实验，其质体和基因是在放松的功能限制下进化的；因此，每一种都代表着研究基因组功能和进化的独特机会。鉴于反向遗传方法在该系统中的困难甚至不可能，对多个天然叶绿体‘突变体’的研究将有助于我们更深入地了解光合作用及其分子组成及其相互作用。