Regulatory Networks during Developmental Phase Transitions and Abiotic Stresses

我实验室的研究重点是了解控制从胚胎发育到营养阶段转变的分子机制。这个相变与休眠的打破和发芽的开始同时发生。尽管控制胚胎到营养阶段转变的机制极大地影响了全世界的农作物产量，但人们对它们的了解却知之甚少。例如，现代农业中与种子休眠密切相关的一个问题是收获前种子发芽（胎生），此时种子仍附着在田间的母株上。这导致多种谷物的谷物质量下降和经济损失。因此，人们对在某些谷物品种中重新引入休眠而不影响其他生长参数非常感兴趣。 我研究的另一个重要领域涉及了解植物在生殖发育和发芽过程中对非生物胁迫的反应，这极大地影响植物的生产力、生长和健康。全球气候变化给植物应对快速变化的环境的能力带来了巨大的压力。温度和土壤盐分的突然稳定增加不仅影响植物的营养和生殖发育，而且影响种子的发芽能力。目前这正在影响全世界的农作物产量。 我之前的研究利用细胞、分子遗传学和基因组方法，发现了控制这些过程的新调控机制。拟议研究的目标是确定和表征对于非生物胁迫期间控制种子休眠和发芽重要的新因素。最终，这项研究将培育出更能耐受环境压力的植物。

Research in my laboratory focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms that control the transition from the embryonic to the vegetative phase of development. This phase transition coincides with the break of dormancy and the onset of germination. The mechanisms controlling the embryonic-to-vegetative phase transition are poorly understood, despite the fact that they greatly affect crop yields worldwide. For instance, a problem in modern agriculture tightly linked to seed dormancy is pre-harvest sprouting of seeds (vivipary), when still attached to the mother plant in the field. This results in reduced grain quality and financial losses in a wide range of cereals. Therefore, there is great interest in reintroducing dormancy in certain cereal varieties without affecting other growth parameters. Another important area of my research involves understanding plant responses to abiotic stresses during reproductive development and germination, which greatly affect plant productivity, growth and fitness. Global climate change is posing an incredible pressure on plant's ability to deal with a rapidly changing environment. The sudden and stable increase in temperature and soil salinity is affecting not only vegetative and reproductive development, but also the ability of seeds to germinate. This is currently affecting crop yield world-wide. Using cellular, molecular genetic and genomic approaches, my previous research has uncovered new regulatory mechanisms controlling these processes. The goal of the proposed research is to identify and characterize new factors important for the control of seed dormancy and germination during abiotic stresses. Ultimately, this research will generate plants that are more tolerant to environental stresses.