Project description
How plants sense and respond to temperature
Recent research has discovered that proteins containing prion domains (PrD) can function as thermosensors for plants by undergoing temperature-dependent phase change. It also found that a number of transcriptional regulators, which are essential for the induction of protective heat stress responses, are also controlled by PrD and undergo phase change. The EU-funded TROPIC project will determine how variation in the PrD may 'tune' the temperature response so plants can adapt their heat stress transcriptome to respond at a threshold appropriate for their climate. The research fellow will determine the temperature-response set points of these regulators in vitro, isolating PrDs from plants that grow under very different temperature regimes and relate the behaviour of the PrD to their biological response to temperature.
Objective
Temperature is a key environmental variable influencing plant distribution. Plants have colonised most habitats, from the tropics to the arctic circle. How plants are able to adapt to climate is of fundamental interest and of particular relevance during a period of rapid climate change, where plants have already been seen to change their phenology and range. Despite much interest in this area, understanding has been limited by our lack of knowledge of the mechanisms underlying temperature perception in plants. Recently, the host lab for this proposal has shown that proteins containing prion-domains (PrD) are able to function as thermosensors by undergoing temperature dependent phase-change. In unpublished work, the group has found that Heat Shock Factors (HSFs), which are essential for the induction of the protective heat shock proteins, are also controlled by PrDs and undergo phase change. These molecular sensing mechanisms by HSFs provide a unique opportunity to investigate how variation in the PrDs may “tune” the temperature response such that plants may adapt their HSFs to have a response at a threshold appropriate for their climate. E.g. rice grows robustly under temperature conditions that represent a lethal heatshock for Arabidopsis. In this proposal, I shall combine my expertise in studying rice environmental sensing from my PhD studies with recent developments in the Wigge laboratory in studying phase change of the HSFs in response to heat. I will use a comparative biology approach to determine the temperature response set-points of HSFs in vitro from a range of plants that grow under very different temperature regimes, and relate the behaviour of the PrD domains of the HSFs to the biological response of the plants to temperature. Finally, I will directly test my hypothesis by making directed changes to the thermosensory PrDs to increase and decrease thermal responsiveness, and assay these new thermosensors directly in plants and in a yeast system.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture grains and oilseeds cereals
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
14979 Grossbeeren
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.