Transcriptional regulation of plant growth in nuclear micro domains.

为了实现“可持续生产足够的粮食来满足世界上不断增长的人口的需求”，科学家们需要制定一种策略，通过优化光捕捉和能量生产来促进植物生长。植物生命周期中最戏剧性的发育转变之一发生在光形态发生期间，此时幼苗从土壤中长出，发育出叶子、叶绿体、胚茎、根，并开始产生光保护化合物。这些过程中的大多数在转录水平上受到调控。为了充分理解基因表达转录调控的原理，我建议采用一种创新的方法来研究环境和内源刺激在哪里、何时以及如何整合，以及细胞核内的信号通路相互作用，以协调对优化植物生长至关重要的基因的表达。更具体地说，我们将研究一种新的环境和内源刺激的关键核信号整合因子在调控基因表达中的功能。TZP是一种核成分，在整合光、激素和时钟网络以加速植物生长方面发挥着重要作用。表达TZP水平增加的植物发育出更长的下胚轴、叶柄和茎，使它们在捕光和能量产生方面比邻近植物表现更好。包括大豆、水稻、大麦和十字花科在内的大多数作物物种的基因组中都含有TZP同源基因，这表明它在不同物种之间具有重要的功能意义。TZP可以为加快经济价值作物的生长速度、成苗和成活提供新的目标。此外，对高度保守的过程进行表征，如转录激活和信号整合，也将有助于了解真核生物基因表达调控的一般知识，并促进预测性疾病筛查的发展。这项研究计划的科学范围包含在BBSRC的战略优先事项中。首先，加速植物生长将在作物科学中有重大应用。其次，基因表达的转录调控机制和核区划是真核生物中基本的和高度保守的过程。这项研究提案产生的结果将与作物科学和健康老龄化的研究直接相关。

To achieve "sustainable production of sufficient food to supply the world's growing population" scientists need to develop a strategy to promote plant growth by optimising light capture and energy production. One of the most dramatic developmental transitions in a plant's life cycle occurs during photomorphogenesis, when a seedling emerges from the soil and develops leaves, chloroplasts, an embryonic stem, roots and starts producing photoprotective compounds. The majority of these processes are regulated at the transcriptional level. To fully understand the principles of transcriptional regulation of gene expression I propose to employ an innovative approach to investigating where, when and how environmental and endogenous stimuli integrate and signalling pathways cross-talk within the nucleus to coordinate the expression of genes that are essential for optimising plant growth. More specifically, we will investigate the function of a novel key nuclear signal integrator of environmental and endogenous stimuli in regulating gene expression. TZP is a nuclear component that plays a major role in integrating light, hormone and clock networks to accelerate plant growth. Plants expressing increased levels of TZP develop longer hypocotyls, petioles and stems that allow them to outperform their neighbours for light capture and energy production. Most crop plant species including soybean, rice, barley and brassicacea contain TZP orthologs in their genome, which is an indication of its functional significance across species. TZP could provide a new target for accelerating growth rates, seedling establishment and survival in economically valuable crop species. Furthermore, characterisation of highly conserved processes, such as transcriptional activation and signal integration will also contribute to the general knowledge of the regulation of gene expression in eukaryotes and facilitate the development of predictive disease screening.The scientific scope of this research plan is encompassed within the strategic priorities of the BBSRC. Firstly, accelerating plant growth will have major applications in crop science. Secondly, the mechanism of transcriptional regulation of gene expression and nuclear compartmentalisation are fundamental and highly conserved processes among eukaryotic organisms. Findings stemming from this research proposal will have direct relevance to research on crop science as well as healthy ageing.