Signaling by Ethylene Receptors of Arabidopsis

新汉普郡大学的G.Eric Schaller博士获得了一项资助，用于研究拟南芥植物中乙烯受体的信号传递。气体乙烯是一种植物激素，可以诱导包括成熟和衰老在内的各种反应。植物通过使用被称为乙烯受体的特定蛋白质来感知乙烯。这些受体能够直接与乙烯结合，然后向细胞发出信号，以承担起调节成熟和衰老反应的基因的刺激作用。这个项目将阐明作为乙烯检测结果而发生的信号机制。激素信号需要受体与额外的蛋白质相互作用。因此，该项目将使用已建立的和新的生化方法来识别与乙烯受体相互作用的蛋白质。此外，该项目将使用遗传方法来确定乙烯受体如何向这些蛋白质发出信号。植物中乙烯信号的调控具有广泛的商业应用。例如，乙烯被广泛用于诱导番茄等水果的成熟。乙烯信号的阻断已经被证明可以延长转基因番茄的货架期和转基因花的瓶插寿命。拟议的研究结果将为乙烯信号传递的早期步骤提供工程修改的机械框架，从而使社会受益。乙烯敏感性的改变将增强我们调节具有重要农艺意义的作物的脱落和果实成熟等过程的能力。

A grant has been awarded to Dr. G. Eric Schaller of the University of New Hampshire to study signaling by ethylene receptors in the plant Arabidopsis. The gas ethylene is a plant hormone that induces a variety of responses including ripening and senescence. Plants perceive ethylene through use of specific proteins known as ethylene receptors. These receptors are capable of directly binding ethylene and then signaling the cell to undertake the stimulation of genes that mediate the ripening and senescence responses. This project will elucidate the mechanism of signaling that occurs as a consequence of ethylene detection. Hormone signaling requires the interaction of receptors with additional proteins. Therefore, this project will use established and novel biochemical approaches to identify proteins that interact with the ethylene receptors. In addition, this project will use genetic approaches to determine how the ethylene receptors signal to these proteins.The regulation of ethylene signaling in plants has broad commercial application. For example, ethylene is widely used to induce ripening of fruit such as tomato. The interruption of ethylene signaling has been shown to extend the shelf-life of transgenic tomatoes and the vase life of transgenic flowers. Results from the proposed research will benefit society by providing a mechanistic framework for engineering modifications into the early steps of ethylene signaling. Modifications of ethylene sensitivity will enhance our ability to regulate such processes as abscission and fruit-ripening in crops of agronomic importance.