This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
How living systems integrate information in complex and changing environments is a central unsolved puzzle of biology. Plant form is continuously modified in response to environmental, developmental, and metabolic cues. Simple chemicals called phytohormones are the means by which information from these diverse sources is encoded, transported, and ultimately translated into life-or-death decisions. Light-directed seedling growth (photomorphogenesis) is one of the best-studied processes in biology, and the phytohormone auxin plays a central role in its regulation. Previous work by the investigators revealed that brassinosteroids, another class of phytohormones, modulate cellular sensitivity to auxin. The goal of this project is to achieve a mechanistic understanding of how these two essential growth-regulatory pathways function together. The investigators will use biochemical, physiological and molecular genetic techniques, in combination with high resolution time-lapse growth analysis, to reveal how specific molecular interactions give rise to exquisitely-calibrated growth control. Auxin and brassinosteroids, and their coordinated action, have been documented in a wide range of species. A likely benefit of this research for the general public is the means to increase human control over plant biomass. By uncovering the master regulators of plant growth, increases in biomass could be engineered in a wide array of commercially-relevant plants, such as key agricultural and biofuel crops. The Principal Investigator is committed to working at the laboratory, department, and community level to foster the development of future scientists and increase scientific literacy. This project will provide broad training for three graduate and at least six undergraduate students. Seven undergraduates have gained hands-on research experience in the laboratory of the Principal Investigator within its first three years. Among the outreach activities of project researchers, several act as docents for the University of Washington Greenhouse and Medicinal Herb Garden, which hosts tours for more than 10,000 K-12 students, undergraduates, and community members every year.
