Nucleoid structure and function in plastids

该项目将回答有关植物叶绿体中的基因如何组织以及该组织如何影响功能的重要问题。 由于叶绿体是光合作用过程中必不可少的，这是地球上生命所必需的，这项工作将产生广泛的影响。本研究将为本科生、研究生和博士后提供高水平的培训机会。此外，该项目还将支持密歇根大学自然历史博物馆的一项广泛的推广计划，为中学生和公众提供了解基因及其功能的机会，以及基因对地球生命的重要性。并非植物或动物细胞等真核细胞中的所有基因都存在于细胞核中。线粒体和质体（如叶绿体）是含有自身DNA的细胞器。这些细胞器的基因组是古代细菌的残余物，这些细菌曾经共生地生活在它们的宿主真核细胞中。这种掺入导致细胞器基因组的修饰，随后影响其结构组织和功能。虽然核基因组组织是深入研究的主题，但细胞器基因组的重要结构方面及其功能仍然知之甚少。该项目将应用传统上用于核基因组的基因组方法来确定质体DNA的结构组织和包装方式。另外的目标将是研究DNA包装在控制质体基因如何工作中起什么作用。这些结果将有助于我们更好地理解质体生物学和光合作用。更广泛地说，它将揭示控制基因组结构和功能的一般规则，并可能提供如何通过工程DNA包装来增强基因组功能的线索。该奖项由分子和细胞生物科学部的遗传机制计划和综合有机体系统部的植物基因组研究计划共同资助，该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project will answer important questions about how genes in plant chloroplasts are organized and how that organization impacts function. Because chloroplasts are essential for the process of photosynthesis, which is necessary for life on Earth, this work will have widespread impact. This research will provide high-level training opportunities for undergraduate students, graduate students and postdocs. In addition, the project will support an extensive outreach program at the University of Michigan Museum of Natural History to provide middle school students and the general public with an opportunity to learn about genes, their functions, and the importance of genes for life on Earth.Not all genes within a eukaryotic cell such as a plant or animal cell are present in the nucleus. Mitochondria and plastids (like chloroplasts) are cellular organelles that contain their own DNA. The genomes of these organelles are remnants of ancient bacteria that once lived symbiotically within their host eukaryotic cells. This incorporation led to the modification of organellar genomes that subsequently impacted their structural organization and function. Whereas nuclear genome organization is the subject of intensive research, important structural aspects of the organellar genomes and their functions remain much less understood. This project will apply genomic approaches that have been traditionally used for nuclear genomes to determine how plastid DNA is structurally organized and packaged. Additional goals will be to investigate what role DNA packaging plays in controlling how plastid genes work. The results will improve our understanding of plastid biology and photosynthesis. More broadly, it will reveal general rules governing the structure and function of genomes and may provide clues about how genome function could be enhanced by engineering DNA packaging.This award was jointly funded by the Genetic Mechanisms Program in the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences and by the Plant Genome Research Program in the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems, both in the Directorate for Biological Sciences.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.