Descrizione del progetto
Districare le reti di interazione tra proteine alla base dell’adattamento metabolico delle piante alla terraferma
Come i pesci si sono evoluti in animali terrestri, gli antenati delle piante terrestri derivano da alghe d’acqua dolce. La transizione dall’acqua alla terraferma fu probabilmente accompagnata dalla comparsa e/o dall’espansione di famiglie di proteine che hanno permesso lo sviluppo di nuove vie metaboliche dei vegetali. Queste sono state studiate accuratamente, ma si hanno scarse informazioni sulle proteine in esse contenute e sulle loro interazioni in reti complesse. Con il sostegno del programma di azioni Marie Skłodowska-Curie, il progetto EPPIMAL studierà più approfonditamente alcuni enzimi fondamentali (catalizzatori di proteine) in vie metaboliche importanti per le piante terrestri esistenti. La caratterizzazione delle reti di interazione proteina-proteina farà luce sull’evoluzione delle vie metaboliche delle piante e potenzialmente rivelerà proteine trascurate.
Obiettivo
Plant colonization of land was a critical evolutionary step for terraformation and the emergence of rich terrestrial ecosystems. Land plant ancestors emerged from freshwater algae and subsequently radiated to yield the astonishing diversity observed nowadays. Extant land plants comprise two major groups, tracheophytes and bryophytes, which represent the vascular and non-vascular stage of their evolution. Recent advances in phylogenomics indicate that the water-to-land transition was accompanied by the emergence and/or expansion of protein families that founded novel plant metabolic pathways. This has been for instance the case for the pathways generating phenylpropanoids, specialized molecules serving as anti-UV and precursors to structural polymers, and the hormones abscisic acid (ABA) and strigolactones (SL) that help plant coordinate stress responses and interaction with microorganisms. While these three plant metabolic pathways are almost fully elucidated, little is known about (i) the organization of involved proteins in interacting networks and (ii) the evolutionary relevance of protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks for the emergence and function of metabolic pathways. EPPIMAL project proposes to answer these questions by exploring the evolution of PPI networks associated with the phenylpropanoid, ABA and SL metabolisms. The project will implement a cutting-edge proximity-dependent labeling (PDL) approach centered on key enzymes to characterize PPI networks in bryophyte and tracheophyte species. The project shall disclose the conservation or expansion of PPI networks in the course of land plant evolution and potentially identify overlooked protein involved in investigated metabolic pathways. PPI data will be complemented with molecular genetics and metabolomics investigations. Altogether, EPPIMAL will bring original information on the evolution of protein networks shaping three iconic land plant metabolic pathways that supported plant adaptation to land.
Campo scientifico
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmolecular biologymolecular genetics
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsproteomics
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologyphycology
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesbiochemistrybiomoleculesproteinsenzymes
Programma(i)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Meccanismo di finanziamento
HORIZON-AG-UN - HORIZON Unit GrantCoordinatore
75794 Paris
Francia