Reciprocal regulation between the circadian clock and the iron homeostasis network in Arabidopsis

Dartmouth College, Hanover NH

Investigators

Abstract

C. Robertson McClung IOS 1257722 Reciprocal regulation between the circadian clock and the iron homeostasis network in Arabidopsis This project will contribute to understanding the role of circadian regulation of iron homeostasis in plants, which is important for two reasons. First, iron often limits plant growth and agricultural yield. Second, although most people acquire iron from plant sources, plant-based diets are poor sources of iron, and iron deficiency represents the single most common human nutritional disorder, affecting approximately one-half of the world's population. The circadian clock integrates temporal information and coordinates many aspects of biology, including metabolism and responses to stress. Specifically, the plant circadian clock regulates the iron homeostasis gene network and, in turn, iron status modulates clock function. This project should help to shape a temporally integrated picture of iron homeostasis; the goal is to understand the network of genes responsible for integrating information about iron status and orchestrating a coordinated response that is temporally as well as spatially regulated. This should transform efforts towards sustainable improvements of crop yields in terms of plant productivity and nutrient content. The project will test the hypothesis that impaired circadian function adversely affects iron homeostasis and thus contributes to reduced fitness and, in agricultural settings, to reduced yield and reduced nutritional quality of food. Understanding the circadian regulation of iron homeostasis may contribute to crop productivity and to nutritional quality of food, particularly in crops grown over broad latitudinal ranges. This project will implement Genetics teaching modules in middle school classrooms in Vermont and New Hampshire in collaboration with the Montshire Museum of Science. Genetic resources (mutant lines and constructs) will be deposited with the Arabidopsis Biological Resource Center. Molecular data will be deposited in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database.