Objective
The plant immune system is innate – it is encoded in the germline. In natural pathosystems, plants efficiently deploy hundreds of immune receptors to detect and disarm rapidly evolving pathogens including viruses, bacteria, nematodes, insects, fungi and oomycetes. Exactly how such receptor diversity can evolve is an elusive question with important practical ramifications. A central class of plant immune receptors, called Nucleotide Binding Leucine Rich Repeats proteins (NLR), has been implicated in recognition of vastly diverse pathogen-derived effector molecules. An emerging paradigm of receptor diversification in plant genomes involves new gene fusions of receptors with host proteins that are normally targeted by pathogen effectors. Such fusion receptors ‘bait’ pathogens and their integrated domains are thought to function as ‘decoys’ or ‘sensors’ that mediate pathogen recognition. I have recently demonstrated that the mechanism of generating new receptors through gene fusions originated at least 500 million years ago in mosses and is common to all flowering plants. Here, I propose to decode the mechanisms of plant immune receptor diversification by gene fusions by studying diversity and functions of immune receptors in grasses, a young highly diversified plant family that includes the three most important crops: maize, rice and wheat. My specific aims are to:
1) Determine rates of receptor diversification within and across genomes
2) Dissect the mechanisms of receptor regulation and receptor activation
3) Generate novel plant immune receptors based on the NLR platform prone to fusions.
In this MIREDI research programme, I will combine state of the art sequencing techniques and bioinformatics, molecular biology and novel reverse genetics techniques to study how plant immune system co-evolves with pathogens and what limits diversification of immunity in domesticated crops.
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
- natural sciences biological sciences zoology entomology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics nucleotides
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics genomes
- natural sciences biological sciences molecular biology
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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.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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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.
ERC-STG - Starting Grant
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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) ERC-2016-STG
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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.
NR4 7UZ NORWICH
United Kingdom
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.