REGULATORY NETWORKS CONTROLLING FEMALE GAMETOPHYTE DEVELOPMENT
An NSF 2010 project
THE PROJECT
The proposed research will determine functions for genes expressed in the Arabidopsis female gametophyte (FG, embryo sac) with the long-term goal of identifying the gene regulatory networks controlling FG cell specification and differentiation. The FG is an integral part of the plant life cycle and plays critical roles in essentially every step of the angiosperm reproductive process. Identification of gene-regulatory networks of the FG will contribute to the ultimate goal of understanding how gene circuitries control plant processes. The specific aims of the project include:
  • Identify a battery of genes including members of transcription factor gene families expressed in each of the FG cells of Arabidopsis using mRNA-based assays.
  • Characterize FG cell-specific patterns of gene expression with promoter:Reporter lines.
  • Determine the functions of identified genes in FG cell specification or differentiation through analysis of corresponding T-DNA mutant lines for defects in FG development and function.
  • Establish the positions of FG transcription-factor genes relative to one another in the gene regulatory circuitry of the FG through analysis of promoter:Reporter expression in the presence of various FG mutations.
  • Elucidate the gene-regulatory networks operating in these cells by identifying direct connections between selected transcription-factor genes expressed in specific cells of the FG and their targets.
CO-PIs
Ramin Yadegari (University of Arizona), Gary Drews (University of Utah) and Karen Schumaker (University of Arizona)

PROJECT SUPPORT
The Regulatory Networks Controlling Female Gametophyte Development Project is supported by an Arabidopsis 2010 Project grant from the National Science Foundation (IOS 0520008). The project uses facilities and resources provided by the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Arizona and the Department of Biology at the University of Utah.