Collaborative Research: Salt-stress regulation of spatiotemporal gene expression patterns in the Arabidopsis root

智力优势：植物感知和适应环境变化的能力对它们的生存至关重要。这不仅适用于生长在自然界中的植物，也适用于生长在田间的植物。根系是感知和响应许多逆境环境条件的主要场所，例如高盐度，这是最普遍的土壤污染物，对农业产生负面影响。根系对钠离子的吸收导致营养缺乏，抑制了茎部的生长。拟南芥已经进化出几种抗胁迫机制，并作为理解基因调控如何使其适应盐度的模型系统。本研究计划的目标是确定控制压力反应的空间和时间方面的调节机制。基因活性通过启动子区域的短dna序列进行调控，称为顺式调控元件。这些元素就像一个密码，通过招募转录因子蛋白来决定特定基因的表达方式，而转录因子蛋白最终决定了基因的活性。本项目旨在通过使用新的细胞类型特异性基因表达数据集和合成生物学方法，破解盐胁迫反应的顺式元件代码。一个由顺式元件和转录因子组成的网络将被生成，以阐明控制响应时空方面的复杂分子相互作用。这项工作将有助于了解植物基因调控网络，并为耐盐植物的工程设计提供工具。更广泛的影响：了解植物在压力条件下如何调节基因活动对于开发能够更好地在边缘农业用地上生长的作物是必要的。特别是，了解在特定组织和特定时间在应激反应中打开和关闭基因的调控代码对于产生在理想和次理想条件下都表现良好的植物至关重要。该研究项目还将提供一个平台，培训学生和科学家使用基因组学和合成生物学方法来解决植物生物学中的重要问题。将在半岛男孩女孩俱乐部设立辅导计划，为贫困青少年提供丰富的活动。计划中的课程将包括旨在向学生介绍植物生物学和生物技术基本概念的实践活动。课程的目标是向学生们灌输对植物在他们生活中所扮演的角色的认识，不同的文化如何对植物育种的历史做出贡献，以及生物技术如何改变未来农业发展的步伐。

Intellectual Merit: The ability of plants to perceive and acclimate to changes in the environment is paramount for their survival. Not only is this true for plants growing in nature, but also for plants growing in the field. The root system represents the primary site of perception and response for many stressful environmental conditions such as high salinity, the most widespread soil contaminant negatively affecting agriculture. Absorption of sodium ions by the root system causes nutrient deficiencies and inhibits the growth of the shoot. Arabidopsis thaliana has evolved several stress-resistance mechanisms and serves as a model system for understanding how the regulation of genes enables acclimation to salinity. The goal of this research program is to determine the regulatory mechanisms that control spatial and temporal aspects of the stress response. Gene activity is regulated through short DNA-sequences in the promoter region, known as cis-regulatory elements. These elements act like a code that determines how a particular gene is expressed by recruiting transcription factor proteins, which ultimately determine gene activity. This project aims to crack the cis-element code for salt stress response through the use of novel cell-type specific gene expression data sets and synthetic biology approaches. A network of cis-elements and transcription factors will be generated to elucidate the complex molecular interactions controlling spatiotemporal aspects of the response. This work will contribute to an understanding of gene regulatory networks in plants and provide tools for engineering salt-tolerant plants.Broader Impact: Understanding how plants regulate gene activity under stressful conditions is necessary for the development of crops better able to grow on marginal agricultural land. In particular, an understanding of the regulatory code used to turn genes on and off in specific tissues and at specific times during the stress response is critical to generate plants that perform well under both ideal and suboptimal conditions. This research program will also provide a platform for training students and scientists on the use of genomic and synthetic biology approaches to address important questions in plant biology. A mentoring program will be established to provide enrichment activities for underprivileged youth at the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula. The planned program will involve hands on activities aimed at introducing students to basic concepts in plant biology and biotechnology. The goals will be to instill an appreciation for the role plants play in their lives, how different cultures have contributed to the history of plant breeding and finally how biotechnology is changing the pace of future agricultural development.