Description du projet
L’horloge biologique d’une plante peut l’aider à savoir quand donner naissance à de nouveaux organes
Les plantes possèdent leur propre système de cellules-souches multipotentes. Les cellules méristématiques présentes dans le méristème apical caulinaire (MAC) sont responsables du développement de l’ensemble des organes en surface d’une plante. La création d’organes (organogenèse) survient tout au long de la vie d’une plante, et elle est modulée par les indices envoyés par l’environnement, dont les changements de température et de lumière. Les plantes, à l’instar des animaux, possèdent également leur propre horloge circadienne qui agit en tant que gestionnaire complexe du développement. Clock‑SAM enquête sur le lien entre les rythmes circadiens et l’activité du MAC en utilisant des changements dans la régulation de l’expression génétique pour les indices. Des informations sur les mécanismes contrôlant l’organogenèse des plantes pourraient avoir des applications essentielles dans la stimulation de la productivité pour les cultures d’intérêt.
Objectif
Plant growth and organogenesis are coordinated by stem cells located in specialized tissues known as meristems. Virtually all the aerial parts of the plant derive from stem cells located in niches at the shoot apical meristem (SAM), where they process internal and external cues to sustain their function. As cells are continuously produced at SAM, it is essential for plants to precisely regulate the timing of proliferation as development and plant organogenesis occurs over time throughout the life cycle. The circadian clock is the primary timing device that enables an organism to measure the pass of the time to precisely coordinate biological activities with the internal cues and its surrounding environment. Despite the importance of stem cell function, the mechanisms controlling the timing of SAM activity in synchronization with the environment remain essentially unknown. we propose to investigate the role of the circadian clock as a flexible biological metronome orchestrating the SAM activity in plants. The Clock-SAM proposal aims to generate a road-map of clock function, defining circadian similarities and divergences among the different functional states at the SAM and establishing the correlation between the circadian pace of the clock and cell fate and specification. We will follow an ambitious integrative approach combining epigenetic and transcriptional regulatory mechanisms to understand stem cell function. Our studies will thus answer a fundamental question in plant cell biology by determining how the plant is temporally constructed in our rotating world. The results from this proposal will provide a framework that can be tested for regulating plant productivity and survival in different environmental conditions. Hence, in the long term our findings could be applied to crops of agronomical interest.
Champ scientifique
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MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EFCoordinateur
08193 Cerdanyola Del Valles
Espagne