RUI: Cell Wall Associated Protein Kinases

Bowdoin College, Brunswick ME

Investigators

Abstract

Plants are composed of a collection of cells whose varied shapes determines the final shape, size and growth characteristics of the entire plant. Each cell is surrounded by a structure called the cell wall, which is made up of carbohydrates and proteins manufactured by the cells. This cell wall must enlarge and be modified during cell growth and division, and the regulation and monitoring of its production and modification is critical to plant form and function. This work investigates a molecule, called WAK for Wall Associated Kinase, that is on the surface of plant cells that allows connection and communication between the cell and its cell wall, so that the cell growth and shape can be correctly regulated. WAK is a protein that traverses from the interior of cells to the outside where it binds pectins in the cell wall. Plants that lack WAK are deficient in cell growth. Experiments using Arabidopsis, a rapidly growing experimentally tractable plant, will include biochemical and genetic analysis of WAKs and WAK binding molecules to understand how the cell and its wall are connected, and the mechanism of information transfer. The work will be carried out at an undergraduate institution where the participating students will be provided with an integrative approach to science, and be prepared for the challenges of graduate and professional schools upon graduation.