Investigating peptide signaling controlling plant development in Arabidopsis

细胞间的通讯是多细胞进化不可或缺的一部分。在植物中，由多肽配体介导的细胞间信号转导已成为生长发育的关键组成部分。植物具有许多编码小肽和受体激酶的基因，这些基因存在于基因家族中，往往具有多余的功能。虽然在理解植物中的多肽信号方面已经取得了令人兴奋的进展，但如何正确地解释不同的多肽信号来控制不同的发育过程仍然知之甚少。这项建议旨在解决多肽信号和植物发育中一个尚未解决的主要问题：多肽配体如何使用相同的受体集引发独特的生物反应。我们集中在两类已知在拟南芥不同发育过程中发挥重叠但独特作用的植物多肽家族。我们将填补花序和气孔发育中受体和下游信号通路之间的主要空白，研究多肽结合与受体差异激活的关系，以破译信号特异性的机制。我们将进一步揭示一个特定的多肽家族在气孔模式中的功能。这项研究将为我们理解促进植物正常发育的多肽信号的分子复杂性、特异性和动力学带来重要的见解。深入了解控制植物发育的机制将使我们能够制定策略，提高农业上重要植物的水分利用效率和生物量生产。

Cell-cell communication is integral to the evolution of multicellularity. In plants, intercellular signaling mediated by peptide ligands has emerged as a key component of growth and development. Plants possess many genes encoding small, secreted peptides and receptor kinases, which occur in gene families and often have redundant functions. Although exciting progress has been made in understanding peptide signaling in plants, how different peptide signals are correctly interpreted to control diverse developmental processes is poorly understood. This proposal aims to address a major unresolved question in peptide signaling and plant development: how peptide ligands elicit unique biological responses using the same sets of receptors. We focus on two classes of the plant peptide family known to play an overlapping yet unique role in various developmental processes in Arabidopsis. We will fill the major gap between receptors and downstream signaling pathways in inflorescence and stomatal development, and study the relationship between peptide binding and receptor differential activation to decipher the mechanisms of signaling specificity. We will further uncover the function of a specific peptide family in stomatal patterning. This research will bring significant insights into our understanding of molecular complexity, specificity, and the dynamics of peptide signaling that enforces proper development in plants. A deep understanding of the mechanisms controlling plant development will allow us to develop strategies to improve water-use efficiency and biomass production of agriculturally important plants.