G2 Checkpoint Responses in Arabidopsis

[摘要] This project focused on the mechanism and biological significance of the G2 arrest response to replication stress in plants. We employed both forward and reverse genetic approaches to identify genes required for this response. A total of 3 different postdocs, 5 undergraduates, and 2 graduate students participated in the project. We identified several genes required for damage response in plants, including homologs of genes previously identified in animals (ATM and ATR), novel, a plant-specific genes (SOG1) and a gene known in animals but previously thought to be missing from the Arabidopsis genome (ATRIP). We characterized the transcriptome of gamma-irradiated plants, and found that plants, unlike animals, express a robust transcriptional response to damage, involving genes that regulate the cell cycle and DNA metabolism. This response requires both ATM and the transcription factor SOG1. We found that both ATM and ATR play a role in meiosis in plants. We also found that plants have a cell-type-specific programmed cell death response to ionizing radiation and UV light, and that this response requires ATR, ATM, and SOG1. These results were published in a series of 5 papers.

[发布日期] 2013-03-18

[学科分类] 生物科学（综合）