MAPoPHAGY · Maturation of plant autophagosomes: mapping the route to sustainability
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2018-09-21 → 2020-09-20
- EU contribution
- €171,461
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Maturation of plant autophagosomes: mapping the route to sustainability
Upcycling of cellular content is a crucial mechanism allowing cells to remove damaged or superfluous content and also produce energy and building blocks in the absence of external resources. In the cells of animal, fungi and plants this is done by a molecular pathway called autophagy (Greek for “self-eating”). Autophagy is generally conserved in all three eukaryotic kingdoms of life, however the mechanism has also acquired kingdom-specific mechanisms. Plant autophagy plays a crucial role in crops fitness, biomass and seed yield, tolerance to changing climate and pathogens. Thus thorough understanding of this mechanism is extremely important for improving crop performance. Originally autophagy was best understood using fungal cells as a model organism. Consequently, the importance of autophagy for human health promoted extensive research on its molecular mechanisms in animal cells. Plant autophagy research has greatly progressed in the past decade, but still heavily relies on extrapolation of the knowledge obtained on animal and yeast model systems. In my project I performed fundamental research focused on investigating plant-specific aspects of autophagy that are essential for understanding the regulation and function of the pathway in plants. To enable my studies I established assays that will be of general use for plant-related research.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Autophagy (from the Greek for “self eating”) is a catabolic process, by which eukaryotic cells degrade and recycle their content. This mechanism removes superfluous, damaged or harmful molecules or organelles and thus greatly impacts fitness of the organism. Autophagic cargo destined for degradation is delivered to the lytic compartment by specialized vesicles, autophagosomes. As of yet, the path from the plant autophagosomes assembly site to the lytic vacuole is uncharted territory. The first objective of this project is to perform a systematic study investigating the dynamic changes in morphology and biochemistry of the plant maturing autophagosomes and creating a molecular map of their route towards the lytic vacuole. This knowledge will be a fundamental contribution to the plant autophagy and plant membrane trafficking research fields. Autophagy is involved in regulating plant longevity, fecundity, stress tolerance and pathogen resistance. Unfortunately, our understanding of its role in establishing these traits is limited by the autophagy detection tools currently available. In this project I will establish the first high sensitivity luminescence-based non-invasive system for in planta detection of autophagic activity. This approach will be a break-through, as it will finally allow real-time in planta tracking of previously undetectable oscillations of autophagic activity throughout plant development under variable conditions.During the past ten years I became an expert in plant autophagy research. My host, Prof. Schumacher, is a world renowned scholar in plant membrane trafficking and lytic vacuole biogenesis. Mutual exchange of our expertise will greatly benefit the project, expand our skills and broaden our scientific networks. Furthermore, this project is a very important step in my career development, as I will join a new field of studies, work in a new scientific environment with an outstanding reputation and markedly strengthen my line of research.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- RUPRECHT-KARLS-UNIVERSITAET HEIDELBERG · HeidelbergCoordinatorGermany
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union