Analysis of the function and regulation of the plastidial serine biosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana

• Applicant: Privatdozent Dr. Stephan Krüger
• Subject Area: Plant Biochemistry and Biophysics
• Term: from 2016 to 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 314119381

Serine (Ser) biosynthesis by the phosphoserine (PS) pathway has been shown to be essential for embryonic and postembryonic plant development. However, the exact cause for the observed developmental and metabolic defects of plants deficient in the PS pathway is still elusive. The genes of the PS pathway are highly expressed in meristematic and developing tissues and plants with reduced PS pathway activity are retarded in growth and inhibited in cell expansion and hypocotyl elongation. Beside these developmental defects, PS pathway-deficient plants show an abnormal accumulation of hydrogen peroxide, starch and most amino acids including Ser. The observed developmental and metabolic phenotypes resemble known phenotypes of plants deficient in redox homeostasis, metabolite and hormone signaling. In the proposed research program we aim to unravel the unknown interaction between these pathways. In addition we aim to elucidate unknown upstream components since our previous studies and in silico analysis indicated an intensive regulation of the PS pathway by abiotic and biotic factors. The activity of the PS pathway in the shoot seems to be restricted to heterotrophic/developing cells but only little is known about these cells in terms of metabolism. Therefore, the translatome of PS pathway-containing cells will be analyzed and compared with the translatome of autotrophic/photorespiratory cells of the shoot.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants