Abstract

3rd year graduate seminarPlants are highly receptive to changes in ambient temperature, with several hundred of genes being differentially regulated in Arabidopsis thaliana upon exposure to heat. The Wigge laboratory has demonstrated that warm temperature responses in A. thaliana involve a change in occupancy of the histone variant H2A .Z, though the role of this chromatin alteration is currently unknown. Despite considerable efforts to identify temperature sensors in plants, the primary mechanism of temperature perception remains to be discovered. To address these issues, I am using a chemical genomics screen to identify proteins implicated in temperature signalling in A. thaliana. In addition, I am using a combination of mass spectrometry, reverse genetics and chromatin immunoprecipitation in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to identify potential regulators of the transcriptional response to heat shock and to gain a better understanding of the role of H2A .Z in regulating this response. As well as identifying key components of temperature signalling pathways, this project could potentially identify chemicals with useful agricultural applications, such as thermal protection of plant reproduction.