Dynamics of gene expression during vegetative phase change in maize

开花植物的生命周期具有明显的、可识别的阶段：胚胎发生、种子休眠、营养生长和开花，开花产生下一代。从营养生长到开花的转变只能发生在植物成虫身上：早期的植物，幼年期不能对开花信号做出反应。从幼体到成体的过渡很重要，不仅因为它使植物具有繁殖能力，产生果实和种子，而且因为在许多物种中，植物在幼体时期的叶子和其他营养器官的发育与在成体时期形成的器官不同。在玉米（或玉米）中，幼叶和成年叶之间的显著差异在于木质素的水平，木质素会干扰纤维素乙醇的生产。该项目将使用一种独特的技术来研究玉米的营养阶段变化，这种技术可以使成年植物恢复活力。这项技术将允许识别控制特定阶段发育模式的基因，最终目标是了解发育状态如何通过分化细胞来解释和表达。微阵列将用于比较处于不同发育阶段的玉米幼叶、过渡叶和成年叶的基因表达模式，从而描绘出叶片分化阶段特异性模式下基因表达的完整图景。随后，选定基因的表达模式将在正常植物、相变突变体和恢复活力的植物中进行检查，以阐明调节美国一种重要作物植物营养相变的遗传网络。研究人员将继续努力将女性和未被充分代表的少数民族纳入植物发育生物学的研究中。

The life cycle of flowering plants features distinct, recognizable phases: embryogenesis, seed dormancy, vegetative growth, and flowering, which gives rise to the next generation. The transition from vegetative growth to flowering can only occur in plants that are adults: plants in the earlier, juvenile phase are incapable of responding to flower-inducing signals. The transition from juvenile to adult is important not only because it allows the plant to become reproductive, producing fruits and seeds, but also because in many species the leaves and other vegetative organs develop differently while the plant is a juvenile compared to those formed during the adult phase. In maize (or corn), a prominent difference between juvenile and adult leaves is in the levels of lignin, which can interfere with cellulosic ethanol production. This project will examine vegetative phase change in maize using a unique technology in which adult plants can be rejuvenated. This technology will allow for the identification of genes that control phase-specific patterns of development, with the ultimate goal of understanding how developmental state is interpreted and expressed by differentiating cells. Microarrays will be employed to compare patterns of gene expression in developing juvenile, transition, and adult maize leaves, each at several different developmental stages, to paint a complete picture of gene expression underlying phase-specific patterns of leaf differentiation. Subsequently, patterns of expression of selected genes will be examined in normal plants and also in both phase change mutants and in rejuvenated plants to elucidate the genetic networks that regulate vegetative phase change in an important crop plant in the US. The investigators will continue their efforts to include females and underrepresented minorities in research in plant developmental biology.