The failure of seasonal adaptations can have a critical impact on an organism's survival and reproductive success. In people, one example of this is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Although the mechanisms of SAD remain elusive, its cause is seasonal variation in light conditions. In order to integrate information about seasonal change into their development, many organisms have evolved mechanisms to sense changes in day length. The long-term goal of our research program is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of day- length measurement. Although the molecular mechanisms of photoperiodism have not yet been well described in many organisms, recent advances in the study of photoperiodic flowering in the model plant Arabidopsis have shed some light on them. In Arabidopsis, the core of photoperiodic time-measurement mechanisms is circadian regulated transcription of the floral activator CONSTANS (CO) gene, and light regulated CO protein stability and activity. In this proposal, we intend to further characterize these core molecular mechanisms by focusing on the functions of FKF1 E3 ubiquitin ligase through genetic, biochemical, and genomic approaches. The knowledge obtained in plant photoperiodism has often facilitated discoveries in other systems. Therefore, findings made in this proposal will be important not only for plant research, but also for broader understanding of photoperiodism in mammals and other systems. In addition, the findings may even provide some conceptional cues to understanding the mechanisms of SAD. Moreover, this type of transcriptional regulation is likely conserved in all eukaryotes, thus the findings will contribute to the understanding of a fundamental transcriptional regulation mechanism. In conclusion, elucidating the photoperiodic flowering mechanism is important not only for understanding a major plant reproduction mechanism, one that is directly applicable for an improvement of crop yield (an important contributor to human health, especially in developing countries) but also in understanding a sophisticated ubiquitination-dependent transcriptional mechanism that is universal among organisms.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM079712-07
Application #
8044686
Study Section
Molecular Genetics B Study Section (MGB)
Program Officer
Tompkins, Laurie
Project Start
2007-04-01
Project End
2013-06-30
Budget Start
2011-04-01
Budget End
2013-06-30
Support Year
7
Fiscal Year
2011
Total Cost
$203,351
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Washington
Department
Biology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
605799469
City
Seattle
State
WA
Country
United States
Zip Code
98195
Krahmer, Johanna; Goralogia, Greg S; Kubota, Akane et al. (2018) Time-resolved interaction proteomics of the GIGANTEA protein under diurnal cycles in Arabidopsis. FEBS Lett :
Fenske, Myles P; Nguyen, LeAnn P; Horn, Erin K et al. (2018) Circadian clocks of both plants and pollinators influence flower seeking behavior of the pollinator hawkmoth Manduca sexta. Sci Rep 8:2842
Song, Young Hun; Kubota, Akane; Kwon, Michael S et al. (2018) Molecular basis of flowering under natural long-day conditions in Arabidopsis. Nat Plants 4:824-835
Lee, Nayoung; Imaizumi, Takato (2018) Uncoupling FT Protein Transport from its Function. Plant Cell Physiol 59:1487-1489
Seaton, Daniel D; Toledo-Ortiz, Gabriela; Ganpudi, Ashwin et al. (2018) Dawn and photoperiod sensing by phytochrome A. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 115:10523-10528
Alessio, Valter Miotto; Cavaçana, Natale; Dantas, Luíza Lane de Barros et al. (2018) The FBH family of bHLH transcription factors controls ACC synthase expression in sugarcane. J Exp Bot 69:2511-2525
Lee, Byoung-Doo; Kim, Mi Ri; Kang, Min-Young et al. (2018) Author Correction: The F-box protein FKF1 inhibits dimerization of COP1 in the control of photoperiodic flowering. Nat Commun 9:553
Pudasaini, Ashutosh; Shim, Jae Sung; Song, Young Hun et al. (2017) Kinetics of the LOV domain of ZEITLUPE determine its circadian function in Arabidopsis. Elife 6:
Kubota, Akane; Ito, Shogo; Shim, Jae Sung et al. (2017) TCP4-dependent induction of CONSTANS transcription requires GIGANTEA in photoperiodic flowering in Arabidopsis. PLoS Genet 13:e1006856
Lee, Byoung-Doo; Kim, Mi Ri; Kang, Min-Young et al. (2017) The F-box protein FKF1 inhibits dimerization of COP1 in the control of photoperiodic flowering. Nat Commun 8:2259

Showing the most recent 10 out of 40 publications