EAGER: Hormetic Responses and their Regulation in Arabidopsis

低剂量的有毒化学品经常被证明可以提高生物体的生物性能。这种现象被称为激效，似乎是基于细胞功能最初破坏后的代偿过程。激效可以使生物体适应突然的环境变化。虽然激效现象已经被描述为各种各样的生物和刺激，但只有很少的研究涉及激效的生物学基础的细节，并且尚不清楚，不同形式的激效是否由共同的遗传过程介导。植物激效的生物学机制是完全未知的，从未系统地分析过。本项目利用拟南芥这一最先进的实验植物系统，开展植物激效遗传学的详细研究。这个初始项目阶段的主要目标将是为拟南芥的激效建立明确的证据，并对介导这些激效反应的生物过程类型提供初步的见解。在鉴定出不同的可能诱导拟南芥激效的因子后，将鉴定和鉴定出具有控制激效基因缺陷的该物种突变体。这将使研究人员能够发现对植物激效至关重要的基因，并揭示不同类型的激效是由共同的还是不同的过程控制的。这些结果将为未来植物激效的扩展研究及其与其他类型生物激效的相关性提供基础。该项目可能会影响医学研究，并将为今后利用激效提高作物产量的方法奠定基础。该项目将为研究生和本科生提供培训，这些学生主要来自在科学领域代表性不足的少数群体。这项研究将与为本科生和研究生开设的植物生物化学和遗传学课程联系起来。

Low doses of toxic chemicals have often been shown to enhance the biological performance of organisms. This phenomenon, which has been termed hormesis, seems to be based on compensatory processes following an initial disruption of cellular functions. Hormesis may thereby enable organisms to adjust to sudden environmental changes. Although hormetic phenomena have been described for a wide variety of organisms and stimuli, only few studies have addressed details of the biological basis of hormesis and it is unclear, if distinct forms of hormesis are mediated by common genetic processes. Biological mechanisms underlying hormesis in plants are completely unknown and have never been systematically analyzed. This project utilizes Arabidopsis, the most advanced experimental plant system, to initiate detailed studies on the genetics of plant hormesis. The main goal of this initial project phase will be to establish unequivocal evidence for hormesis in Arabidopsis and to provide preliminary insights on the types of biological processes that mediate these hormetic responses. Following the identification of disparate agents potently inducing hormesis in Arabidopsis, mutants of this species with defects in genes involved the control of hormesis will be identified and characterized. This will allow researchers to uncover genes critical for plant hormesis and will reveal if distinct types of hormesis are controlled by common or distinct processes. These results will provide a foundation for future expanded studies on plant hormesis and its relevance for hormesis in other types of organisms. This project is likely to impact medical research and will serve as a basis for future approaches utilizing hormesis for enhanced crop production. The project will provide training to graduate students as well as undergraduate students, mainly from minority groups that are underrepresented in the sciences. This study will be linked to classes on plant biochemistry and genetics taught for undergraduate and graduate students.