EAGER: Leveraging Phytochromes for Dominant Developmental Control of Plants

现代农业依赖于通过选择性育种根据环境精心定制的作物。在这方面，光敏色素是这类修饰的一个有吸引力的靶标，因为它们是植物生长和发育的关键调节因子，对光和荫做出反应。因此，光敏色素一直是常规育种计划的目标，旨在改善种子萌发、幼苗建立、叶片发育和开花时间。最近，在拟南芥中发现了一个新的显性的、成分激活的光敏色素B(YHB)等位基因，它的表达影响了所有这些过程。这个迫切的项目的总体目标是开发YHB等位基因选择性调节转基因植物光形态建成程序的能力，并将这些等位基因作为植物衍生的、不含抗生素的遗传选择标记用于紫花苜蓿和十字花科植物。其具体目的是(1)表征和利用YHB基因表达的时空调控，以选择性地调控植物的光敏反应；(2)开发和开发YHB载体作为植物来源的、无化学物质的选择标记，用于植物和组织培养的遗传选择。如果成功，该项目将提供对光敏色素功能的新见解，这可能会对作物的改良产生潜在的广泛影响。除了为博士后研究助理提供培训机会外，该项目还将参与加州大学戴维斯分校社区学院获得本科生研究经验(CCAT-REU)计划，该计划为社区大学学生提供研究培训实习机会。如果成功，该项目预计将通过出版物/演示和NCBI基因表达总集产生并公开分发新的方法和结果。这项工作产生的所有植物和DNA材料将免费分发给所有请求者，并获得加州大学戴维斯分校技术转让办公室批准的适当MTA协议。

Modern agriculture relies on crops that have been carefully tailored for environments by selective breeding. In this regard, phytochromes are an attractive target for such modifications, because they are key regulators of plant growth and development in response to light and shade. As such, phytochromes have been targets of conventional breeding programs aimed to improve germination, seedling establishment, leaf development, and flowering time. Recently, a novel dominant, constitutively activated allele of phytochrome B (YHB) in Arabidopsis has been identified whose expression impacts all of these processes. The overall goal of this EAGER project is to exploit the ability of YHB alleles for selective regulation of photomorphogenic programs in transgenic plants and to engineer these alleles for use as a plant-derived, antibiotic-free genetic selection marker in Medicago and Brassica species. The specific aims are to (1) characterize and exploit spatial and temporal regulation of YHB expression to selectively regulate phytochrome responses in plants; and, (2) develop and exploit YHB vectors as plant-derived, chemical-free selection marker for in planta and tissue culture-based genetic selection. If successful, this project will provide new insight into phytochrome function that may have potential broad impact for the improvement of crop plants.In addition to providing training opportunities for a postdoctoral research associate, the project will participate in the UC Davis Community College Access to Research Experiences for Undergraduates (CCAT-REU) program that provides research training internships to community college students. If successful, the project is expected to generate and publically distribute new methods and findings through publications/presentations and through NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus. All plant and DNA materials generated by this work will be distributed to all requestors for no charge with appropriate MTA agreements approved by the UC Davis Office of Technology Transfer.