Arabidopsis 2010: Understanding Chloroplast Function

作为光合作用的场所，叶绿体是绿色植物的决定性细胞器，可以被认为是世界上的生命维持系统。它是功能基因组学的一个有吸引力的目标，因为它参与了广泛的生物合成过程，但具有与细菌细胞相似的基因数量和代谢过程。该项目的目的是确定~4400个核基因的功能，这些基因被预测为编码拟南芥中的叶绿体靶蛋白。计算机方法正被用来为许多叶绿体蛋白质建立结构模型，并正在分析已测序的细菌基因组，以将未知功能的基因与已知功能的基因联系起来。总之，这些信息学方法将为未知功能的基因的作用产生假说。基因敲除品系将分析叶绿体、植物和种子形态，以及光合作用参数和选定的叶绿体合成代谢物。将对具有形态或代谢表型的突变体进行深入的表征，包括分析通过种子的中央代谢网络的通量。信息和表型数据将通过一个项目网站(http://plastid.msu.edu)提供给研究界。更广泛的影响：通过丰富编码叶绿体靶标蛋白的核基因的注释，这项研究将为全面了解植物整个生命周期中的叶绿体功能奠定基础。该项目将通过尝试改进大约15%的拟南芥蛋白质编码基因的注释，为2010年项目的目标做出贡献。由于将要研究的许多性状是作物的重要目标，这些结果应该为转基因作物改良和重要经济作物的分子育种提供参考。该项目将涉及对学生和博士后研究人员的跨学科培训。每个学员将接触到多个科学领域，从信息学方法，到高通量表型分析和通量测量，再到数据分析方法，为他们在21世纪的生物学职业生涯做好准备。除了对学生的交叉培训外，该项目还将在三个层面上整合研究和教育：1.为本科生和中学教师提供暑期研究经验；2.为主要是本科学校的教师提供暑期研究机会；3.利用Lon-CAPA基于网络的课程管理系统(www.lon-capa.org)，培训学员使用尖端的计算机课程开发工具。

As the site of photosynthesis, the chloroplast is the defining organelle of green plants and may be thought of as the world's life-support system. It is an attractive target for functional genomics because it participates in a wide array of biosynthetic processes yet has a similar number of genes and metabolic processes as a bacterial cell. The aim of this project is to determine functions for the ~4,400 nuclear genes predicted to encode plastid-targeted proteins in Arabidopsis. Computer methods are being used to create structural models for many plastid proteins and sequenced bacterial genomes are being analyzed to link genes of unknown function with those of known function. Together, these informatics approaches will generate hypotheses for the roles of genes of unknown function. Knockout lines will be analyzed for chloroplast, plant, and seed morphology, as well as photosynthetic parameters and selected chloroplast-synthesized metabolites. In-depth characterization of mutants with morphological or metabolic phenotypes will be performed, including analyzing flux through the central metabolic network in seeds. The informatic and phenotypic data will be made available to the research community through a project website (http://plastid.msu.edu ). Broader Impacts: By enriching the annotation of nuclear genes encoding plastid-targeted proteins, the research will lay the foundation for a comprehensive understanding of plastid function throughout the life cycle of plants. The project will contribute to the objectives of the 2010 Project by attempting to improve the annotation of approximately 15% of the protein-coding genes of Arabidopsis. Because a number of the traits that will be studied are important targets in crops, these results should inform approaches to transgenic crop improvement and molecular breeding of economically important plants. The project will involve interdisciplinary training of students and postdoctoral researchers. Each trainee will be exposed to multiple areas of science, ranging from informatic approaches, through high-throughput phenotypic analysis and flux measurements, to data analysis methods, preparing them for 21st century biology careers. In addition to cross-training of students, this project will integrate research and education at three levels: 1.Summer research experiences for undergraduate students and secondary school teachers; 2.Summer research opportunities for faculty from primarily undergraduate schools; 3.Training of participants in cutting edge computer-based curriculum development tools using the Lon-CAPA web-based course management system (www.lon-capa.org).