PI CBGP: Raquel Iglesias Fernández

Seed Environmental Perception and Adaptation

Co-PI CBGP: Jesús Vicente Carbajosa

Regulatory networks in the seed: integration of development, metabolism and environmental conditions

PI CEPLAS: Goetz Hensel

Centre for Plant Genome Engineering

Project summary:

Barley is an important European crop used as a model for small-grain cereals. As genetic transformation, genetic engineering, and genome editing are established, this crop seems ideal for analyzing critical biological questions. Autophagy is a catabolic process involved in the specific degradation of proteins in response to various stimuli. In seeds, autophagy has been related to (i) accumulation of storage proteins during seed maturation, (ii) reserve mobilization during seed imbibition, and (iii) selective protein degradation in response to environmental changes. Barley grains accumulate Seed Storage Proteins in Protein Storage Vacuoles, mobilized during imbibition by autophagy-like mechanisms, resembling trafficking pathways common among cereals. However, more profound insights into the underlying molecular mechanisms will be founded. In Arabidopsis thaliana, we have identified several autophagy genes whose counterparts can be analyzed in barley gain and loss-of-function mutants. To this end, the know-how and proficiency of the CEPLAS partner will enable the generation of complete barley knock-outs, truncation of specific domains, and base editing or swapping of natural alleles, depending on the target. Within the DECAPH project, the complementary expertise of both partners will allow further characterization of these lines by combining molecular physiology, transcriptomics, and confocal microscopy techniques to expand the knowledge of autophagy and its impact in barley grains.