Research Group Overview

Functional genomics tools

To identify gene-phenotype relationships in model plants Arabidopsis and rice knockout and gain-of-function insertional mutagenesis strategies have been developed using the maize En(Spm)-I(dSpm) and Ac-Ds transposon systems, where reverse genetics methods can be applied with inserts characterized by flanking sequence tags (FSTs). To circumvent genome redundancy gain-of-function activation, tagging using a transposon system has been developed in Arabidopsis and revealed a number of novel mutants and genes involved with development, metabolism and abiotic/biotic stress resistance that are being characterized using other functional genomics tools.

Stress systems biology

Mutants and regulator genes identified by the gain-of-function strategies that confer increased drought, salt and disease resistance are useful for the analysis of the downstream regulated network of genes. Microarray analysis has revealed that overexpression lines (constitutive or regulated) of these abiotic stress resistance genes confer a regulon that overlaps with genes induced by the specific environmental stress such as drought. The different stress resistant genes confer regulons that partially overlap and provide clues on their different mechanisms. Further efforts are in progress to identify the sequence of the regulatory pathways using induced overexpression and knockout mutants of key genes in the stress related networks. This would lead to an understanding of the key genes responsible for providing specific stress resistance phenotypes, as well as their interaction with other biological processes within a plant.

Regulation of metabolic pathways

Screens for gain-of-function mutants affected in metabolic pathways have revealed regulatory genes involved in the control of the underlying pathway, validating the system for identification of such genes. We intend to use targeted and non-targeted screens to identify genes involved in a number of important plant processes regulating lipid metabolism and affecting pathways in bioenergy assimilation.

Leader: Andy Pereira