Identification of cell fate specification mechanisms during early embryogenesis in Arabidopsis

• Project/Area Number: 22KF0023
• Project/Area Number (Other): 21F21379 (2021-2022)
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund (2023); Single-year Grants (2021-2022)
• Section: 外国
• Review Section: Basic Section 44030:Plant molecular biology and physiology-related
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: 植田 美那子 東北大学, 生命科学研究科, 教授 (20598726)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): KAO PING 東北大学, 生命科学研究科, 外国人特別研究員
• Project Period (FY): 2023-03-08 – 2024-03-31
• Project Status: Granted (Fiscal Year 2023)
• Budget Amount: ¥2,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,300,000); Fiscal Year 2023: ¥100,000 (Direct Cost: ¥100,000); Fiscal Year 2022: ¥1,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,000,000); Fiscal Year 2021: ¥1,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000)
• Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana / embryogenesis / transcriptome / cellular dynamics

Outline of Research at the Start

本研究では、シロイヌナズナの初期発生過程において、器官形成の鍵となる転写因子群を探索する。まず、初期胚での遺伝子発現データをクラスタリングし、胚発生中に形成される各組織で働くと考えられる候補遺伝子群を選抜する。こられについて、蛍光マーカーを用いた発現パターンの可視化や、遺伝子破壊株による機能解析を行うことで、胚発生における役割を推定する。これらの解析を通じ、多様な発生運命を規定する分子基盤を明らかにすることを目指す。

Outline of Annual Research Achievements

This study aims to identify the key genes involved during embryogenesis in Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis). Zygotic embryogenesis is a fundamental developmental process in which a single-celled zygote goes through a series of cell divisions, patterning and cell type specifications to form a complex embryo during eukaryotic sexual reproduction. In the flowering plant Arabidopsis, the zygotes divide with a stereotypic pattern, making them an ideal system to observe embryo morphology and to trace cell lineage. While decades of genetic analyses have identified a number of genes that play vital roles in embryogenesis, the genome-wide analyses were not feasible until recently due to technical difficulties. We utilized published embryonic transcriptome datasets to search for key regulatory genes of embryogenesis as well as to resolve the underlying regulatory networks. With bioinformatics approaches, we selected a number of candidate genes for further validations and analyses. Identifying the key factors involved in embryonic cell divisions and specifications will greatly improve our knowledge of flowering plant embryogenesis mechanisms, which is important for understanding the fundamental biological process enabling multicellular eukaryotic lives.

Current Status of Research Progress

1: Research has progressed more than it was originally planned.

Reason

We have collected and analyzed published Arabidopsis embryonic transcriptome data and searched for promising factors contributing to crucial cellular events during zygotic embryogenesis. Several genes were selected, and the molecular and genetic examinations of these factors are now in progress.

Strategy for Future Research Activity

First, reporters of the selected genes will be made, and the transgenic lines will be examined to validate the expression patterns. The confirmed genes will then be subjected to functional analyses with mutant lines and molecular variants. Additional RNA sequencing is also scheduled in order to search for more key genes involved in embryogenesis.

Research Products

• [Int'l Joint Research] Wageningen University(オランダ)