Transcription factor networks regulating the cell specific gene expression required for C4 photosynthesis

在许多生物体中，不同的细胞类型执行特定的功能。其中一个很好的例子是在使用所谓的C4光合作用途径的植物中发现的。在这些物种中，基本的光合作用过程发生在两种类型的细胞中，即叶肉细胞和束鞘细胞。几十年来，人们一直在研究编码光合作用蛋白的基因是如何调控的，从而使部分光合作用途径仅限于叶肉细胞，而其他光合作用蛋白仅在维管束鞘中表达。利用也有这些细胞的C3拟南芥模型，我们最近发现了一个转录因子模块，它能够将基因模式化为束鞘细胞。我们可以在C4光合作用基因中检测到这个模块的特征，现在我们希望确定是否使用这种机制将这些基因划分到C4束鞘中。此外，我们还希望了解我们已经确定的在束鞘中表达所必需和充分的转录因子是如何产生这种输出的，以及它们本身是如何被调节的。这项工作将提供对多细胞生物体中基因表达的空间调控的基本见解，特别是对C4基因表达是如何产生的关键见解。

In many organisms distinct cell types carry out defined functions. One excellent example of this is found in plants that use the so-called C4 photosynthetic pathway. In these species the fundamental photosynthetic process takes place in two cell types known as mesophyll and bundle sheath cells. How genes encoding photosynthesis proteins are regulated such that part of pathway is restricted to mesophyll cells, and others are expressed only in the bundle sheath has been studied for decades. Using the C3 model Arabidopsis that also has these cells we have recently identified a transcription factor module that is able to pattern genes to bundle sheath cells.We can detect the hallmarks of this module in C4 photosynthesis genes and we now wish to determine if this mechanism is used to compartment these genes into the C4 bundle sheath. Furthermore, we also wish to understand how the transcription factors that we have identified as being necessary and sufficient for expression in the bundle sheath generate this output, and also how they themselves are regulated. The work will provide fundamental insight into the spatial regulation of gene expression in multicellular organisms, and in particular provide key insights into how C4 gene expression is brought about.