Objective
All vascular plants contain the woody tissue type, xylem, but some are woodier than others. The vascular cambium produces xylem inwards and phloem outwards. In small plants, xylem and phloem are formed in an equal ratio, but excessive wood is produced in trees, and this is essential for trees to grow tall. However, the underlying mechanism is unknown. My group’s unpublished studies on hybrid aspen revealed that, unlike in herbaceous Arabidopsis, xylem precursors in aspen act as transit amplifying (TA) cells, i.e. they undergo additional cell divisions before differentiating into xylem. Because the phloem precursors do not undergo TA divisions, the aspen cambium generates more xylem than phloem.
The ground-breaking aspect of WOODIER is to understand the molecular mechanism by which the vascular cambium of tree stems produces excessive amounts of wood. Thus, I propose to identify differences between Arabidopsis and aspen xylem precursors through single-cell RNA sequencing and a novel, comparative xylem precursor-specific transcriptome–proteome analysis. This is followed by molecular genetic dissection of candidates to uncover the factors controlling core cell-cycle regulators and division-plane orientation, thereby enabling controlled TA divisions. We will assess the molecular mechanism by modelling, which will elucidate the scalability of TA divisions. Scalability is important, since cambium activity and xylem production vary greatly during the seasons. Thus, I will study how TA factors regulate xylem production dynamics in aspen during the different seasons. Finally, I aim to engineer xylem overproduction in non-tree species by introducing the key TA factors into Arabidopsis as a proof-of-principle for making crop plant stems woodier to withstand the weight of fruits. Collectively, WOODIER will reveal how dynamic, season-controlled growth asymmetry is achieved in plants, and lays the foundation for rational manipulation of wood formation in crop plants and trees.
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Keywords
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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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
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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.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2025-ADG
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00014 Helsinki
Finland
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