Abstract

Carotenoids are the precursors of Vitamin A (required for vision) and are vital in photoprotection of animal and plant cells. The carotenoid biosynthetic pathway is a regulated pathway in plants, yet we have no information on the expression or regulation of specific genes (regulatory or biosynthetic) associated with the pathway. Considering that carotenoids play a significant role in photoprotection and energy transfer, it is compelling to explore the molecular basis of carotenoid biosynthesis and its regulation. Moreover, since this pathway must incorporate numerous regulatory mechanisms, a large contribution to our understanding of gene expression, gene regulation, and signal transduction, is nonexistent. We propose to isolate and characterize genes expressed in maize to begin answering questions regarding regulation of carotenoid biosynthesis in higher plants. An important outgrowth of this research will be the potential for future genetic engineering of carotenoid genes into plants, such as rice, which are nutritionally limited in carotenoids (essential in synthesis of vitamin A and in cancer prevention).

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Minority Biomedical Research Support - MBRS (S06)
Project #
5S06GM008225-10
Application #
3756181
Study Section
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
Budget End
Support Year
10
Fiscal Year
1994
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
Herbert H. Lehman College
Department
Type
DUNS #
620128301
City
New York
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
10468

  Publications

Zheng, Zhi-Liang (2017) Ras and Rho GTPase regulation of Pol II transcription: A shortcut model revisited. Transcription 8:268-274
Zhang, Bo; Yang, Guohua; Chen, Yu et al. (2016) C-terminal domain (CTD) phosphatase links Rho GTPase signaling to Pol II CTD phosphorylation in Arabidopsis and yeast. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 113:E8197-E8206
Guerrero-Berroa, Elizabeth; Kluger, Alan; Schmeidler, James et al. (2014) Neuropsychological and neuropsychiatric prediction of global cognitive status among older Spanish-speaking Hispanics and English-speaking whites. J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol 27:266-75
Zhang, Bo; Pasini, Rita; Dan, Hanbin et al. (2014) Aberrant gene expression in the Arabidopsis SULTR1;2 mutants suggests a possible regulatory role for this sulfate transporter in response to sulfur nutrient status. Plant J 77:185-97
Sailor, Kevin; Brooks, Patricia J (2014) Do part-whole relations produce facilitation in the picture-word interference task? Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 67:1768-85
Gharbaran, Rajendra; Alvarado, Susana; Aisemberg, Gabriel O (2014) Regional and segmental differences in the embryonic expression of a putative leech Hox gene, Lox2, by central neurons immunoreactive to FMRFamide-like neuropeptides. Invert Neurosci 14:51-8
Gharbaran, Rajendra; Aisemberg, Gabriel O (2013) Identification of leech embryonic neurons that express a Hox gene required for the differentiation of a paired, segment-specific motor neuron. Int J Dev Neurosci 31:105-15
Gharbaran, Rajendra; Aisemberg, Gabriel O; Alvarado, Susana (2012) Segmental and regional differences in neuronal expression of the leech Hox genes Lox1 and Lox2 during embryogenesis. Cell Mol Neurobiol 32:1243-53
Yang, Hui; Figueroa, Mario; To, Satoshi et al. (2010) Benzophenones and biflavonoids from Garcinia livingstonei fruits. J Agric Food Chem 58:4749-55
Vallabhaneni, Ratnakar; Bradbury, Louis M T; Wurtzel, Eleanore T (2010) The carotenoid dioxygenase gene family in maize, sorghum, and rice. Arch Biochem Biophys 504:104-11

Showing the most recent 10 out of 67 publications