Modification of the cellular gene expression program through regulation of transcription is a key mechanism for control of normal development and a causal agent of disease in multi-cellular organisms. Recently, chromatin remodeling has emerged as an important regulator of transcriptional activation and repression. Chromatin remodeling complexes alter the accessibility of the DNA to transcription factors or to the transcriptional machinery by inducing non-covalent, local changes in the DNA-nucleosome association. While the mechanics of chromatin remodeling are being elucidated, the role of chromatin remodeling in multicellular eukaryote development is less well understood. We are well positioned to address this question because we have recently isolated a viable mutant in a chromatin remodeling ATPase homolog called SPLAYED (SYD). Mutations in SYD cause distinct developmental defects in the plant model system Arabidopsis thaliana. To investigate the developmental role of chromatin remodeling we seek: 1) to demonstrate that SYD is a component of a complex that exhibits chromatin remodeling activity, using doubly epitope tagged, biologically active SYD protein and SYD-specific antibodies we generated; 2) to define the precise role of SYD in stem cell maintenance, an important developmental pathway of which SYD is a component, using a combined genetic and molecular approach; and 3) taking advantage of the unique strength of our system, to genetically identify and characterize factors that act together with or antagonistically to SYD in developmental control. Through defining the molecular mechanism of action of SYD and the role of SYD and SYD-interacting factors in Arabidopsis development, we hope to contribute to the understanding of the role of chromatin remodeling in multicellular eukaryote development. ? ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM064650-05
Application #
7409616
Study Section
Cell Development and Function Integrated Review Group (CDF)
Program Officer
Carter, Anthony D
Project Start
2004-05-01
Project End
2010-04-30
Budget Start
2008-05-01
Budget End
2010-04-30
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2008
Total Cost
$283,722
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Pennsylvania
Department
Biology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
042250712
City
Philadelphia
State
PA
Country
United States
Zip Code
19104
Yamaguchi, Nobutoshi; Winter, Cara M; Wu, Miin-Feng et al. (2014) PROTOCOLS: Chromatin Immunoprecipitation from Arabidopsis Tissues. Arabidopsis Book 12:e0170
Han, Soon-Ki; Wagner, Doris (2014) Role of chromatin in water stress responses in plants. J Exp Bot 65:2785-99
Vercruyssen, Liesbeth; Verkest, Aurine; Gonzalez, Nathalie et al. (2014) ANGUSTIFOLIA3 binds to SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complexes to regulate transcription during Arabidopsis leaf development. Plant Cell 26:210-29
Efroni, Idan; Han, Soon-Ki; Kim, Hye Jin et al. (2013) Regulation of leaf maturation by chromatin-mediated modulation of cytokinin responses. Dev Cell 24:438-45
Sang, Yi; Silva-Ortega, Claudia O; Wu, Shuang et al. (2012) Mutations in two non-canonical Arabidopsis SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodeling ATPases cause embryogenesis and stem cell maintenance defects. Plant J 72:1000-14
Han, Soon-Ki; Sang, Yi; Rodrigues, Americo et al. (2012) The SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodeling ATPase BRAHMA represses abscisic acid responses in the absence of the stress stimulus in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell 24:4892-906
Sang, Yi; Wu, Miin-Feng; Wagner, Doris (2009) The stem cell--chromatin connection. Semin Cell Dev Biol 20:1143-8
Walley, Justin W; Rowe, Heather C; Xiao, Yanmei et al. (2008) The chromatin remodeler SPLAYED regulates specific stress signaling pathways. PLoS Pathog 4:e1000237
Pfluger, Jennifer; Wagner, Doris (2007) Histone modifications and dynamic regulation of genome accessibility in plants. Curr Opin Plant Biol 10:645-52
Kwon, Chang Seob; Wagner, Doris (2007) Unwinding chromatin for development and growth: a few genes at a time. Trends Genet 23:403-12

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