Source: UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA submitted to NRP
RING TRUE II TASK 5 ABIOTIC STRESS
Sponsoring Institution
State Agricultural Experiment Station
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
STATE
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0193220
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
May 1, 2002
Project End Date
Jul 31, 2005
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA
(N/A)
RENO,NV 89557
Performing Department
BIOCHEMISTRY
Non Technical Summary
(N/A)
Animal Health Component
50%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
50%
Applied
50%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
20324991060100%
Knowledge Area
203 - Plant Biological Efficiency and Abiotic Stresses Affecting Plants;

Subject Of Investigation
2499 - Plant research, general;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
Build competitive research programs in integrative approaches to abiotic stress by assembling and promoting interactions among a critical mass of investigators employing genomics technologies to address research questions about organismal interactions with stressful environments. Improve inadequate infrastructure such as controlled environment facilities and proteomic/metabolomic instrumentation and bioinformatics. Foster interactions between scientists working at the molecular genetic, biochemical, physiological, organismal, and ecological levels to force integration across multiple scales of biological complexity. Provide opportunities for interaction among Nevada scientists to initiate new research programs in abiotic stress.
Project Methods
Competitive research programs will be built by providing competitive start-up funds to attract new faculty members with expertise in the area of abiotic stress biology. Infrastructure improvements will be obtained by the acquisition of multi-user controlled environment facilities, cDNA microarray scanners, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis equipment, mass spectrometry instrumentation, and bioinformatics computational servers. Multidisciplinary interactions will be fostered by providing collaborative training activities among students and faculty through funding graduate fellowship and undergraduate research scholars programs. Conduct an annual research symposium to disseminate information about new developments in abiotic stress and functional genomics disciplines to stimulate communication among Nevada scientists working in the area of molecular and physiological adaptation and to increase the national and international recognition of their efforts.

Progress 05/01/02 to 07/31/05

Outputs
The Integrative Approaches to Abiotic Stress (IAAS) cluster made great progress using funding from this EPSCOR infrastructure-building grant to foster integrative research in the area of abiotic stress. The IAAS program resulted in more than a four-fold increase in competitive research funding compared to the baseline funding measured in 2001. This far exceeded our stated goal of increasing funding in this area by 50%. This tremendous success is a direct result of EPSCoR-sponsored infrastructure development in IAAS, which has led to the creation of new Nevada facilities supporting research in genomics, proteomics, and bioinformatics. EPSCoR funds contributed to the recruitment of nine new faculty (six at UNLV, two at UNR, and one at DRI) in fields related to our research focal areas. Over the last three years of this program, Nevada has already recruited thirteen talented new researchers, of which five are from underrepresented groups. Underrepresented faculty hires were specifically targeted by our Increasing Diversity in science in Nevada (IDIN) initiative, in which EPSCoR support supplements their start-up packages. These latter hires more than doubled the proportion of science and engineering faculty from underrepresented groups in NSHE research institutions.

Impacts
The IAAS program has had a major impact on enhancing the research environment in Nevada by building up a critical mass of Three Scientific Research Conferences on Integrative Approaches to Abiotic Stress were held each year in 2002-2004. Participant numbers ranged from 60-100 depending on the year. Participants including students and scientists from UNR, UNLV, and the Desert Research Institute. Six graduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships. Each student was comentored by IAAS faculty mentors. Fifteen undergraduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships. Each student worked in a specific laboratory mentored by IAAS faculty during the summers of 2002-2004. This research training culminated in each student presenting a poster on their research activities at an annual poster session. EPSCOR equipment funds were used primarily to establish and enhance a state-of-the-art proteomics/metabolomics analysis facility and the Nevada Bioinformatics Center at UNR. EPSCoR funding was also used to purchase and install an Agilent Bioanalyzer for quality control analysis of DNA, RNA, and protein samples submitted to the Nevada Genomic Center.

Publications

  • Ermolova NV, Cushman MA, Taybi T, Condon SA, Cushman JC, Chollet R (2003) Expression, purification, and initial characterization of a recombinant form of plant PEP-carboxylase kinase from CAM-induced Mesembryanthemum crystallinum with enhanced solubility in Escherichia coli. Protein Express Purific. 29:123-131.
  • Gehrig HH, Aranda J, Cushman MA, Virgo A, Cushman JC, Hammel BE, Winter K. (2003) Cladogram of Panamanian Clusia based on nuclear DNA: Implications for the origins of Crassulacean Acid Metabolism. Plant Biol. 5:59-70.
  • Cushman JC (2003) C3 photosynthesis to Crassulacean acid metabolism shift in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum: A stress tolerance mechanism. Encyclo. Plant Crop Sci. In press.
  • Mao C, Cushman JC, May G, Weller JW (2003) ESTAP-an automated system for the analysis of EST data. Bioinformatics. 19:1720-1722.
  • Agarie S, Cushman JC. (2003) Genetic and biochemical studies on salt tolerance in the facultative CAM halophyte, Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Proc. Japan/Taiwan Symposium on Molecular Biology of Functional Regulation in Plant and Microbe. Saga University, Saga, Japan. pp. 92-103.
  • Eigenheer RA, Wiehart UM, Nicolson SW, Schoofs L, Schegg KM, Hull JJ, Schooley DA. (2003) Isolation, identification and localization of a second beetle antidiuretic peptide. Peptides. 24:27-34.
  • Rizhsky L, Liang H, Mittler R. (2003) The water-water cycle is essential for chloroplast protection in the absence of stress. J Biol Chem. 278:38921-5.
  • Pnueli L, Liang H, Rozenberg M, Mittler R (2003) Growth suppression, altered stomatal responses, and augmented induction of heat shock proteins in cytosolic ascorbate peroxidase (Apx1)-deficient Arabidopsis plants. Plant J. 34:187-203.
  • Kaplan A, Lieman-Hurwitz J, Mittler R, Ronan-Tarazi M, Bonfil D, Schatz D (2003) Enhancing inorganic carbon fixation by photosynthetic organisms. Plant Biotechnology 1: 43-50.
  • Liu WS, Beattie CW, Ponce de Leon FA (2003) Bovine Y chromosome microsatellite polymorphisms. Cytogenet Genome Res.102(1-4):53-8.
  • DeFalco LA, Bryla DR, Smith-Longozo V, Nowak RS (2003) Are Mojave Desert annual species equal? Resource acquisition and allocation for the invasive grass Bromus madritensis subsp. rubens (Poaceae) and two native species. American-Journal-of-Botany. 90: 1045-1053.
  • Nowak RS, Hansen JD, Nowak-CL (2003) Effects of grass bug feeding and drought stress on selected lines of crested wheatgrass. Western-North-American-Naturalist. 63: 167-177.
  • Whisman, N., D. York, L. Manning, J. Brant, R. Dyer, A. Childress, E.A. Marchand, and J.D. Adams (2003) Probing Microplatform for the Study of Biological Adhesion Forces. Review of Scientific Instruments, 74(10):4491-4494.
  • Marchand, E.A. and J. Silverstein (2003) The Role of Enhanced Heterotrophic Bacterial Growth on Iron Oxidation by Acidithiobacillusferrooxidans. Geomicrobiology Journal. 20(3):231-244.
  • Branen JK, Shintani DK, Engeseth NJ. (2003) Expression of antisense acyl carrier protein-4 reduces lipid content in Arabidopsis leaf tissue. Plant Physiol. 132(2):748-56.
  • Mizoshita K, Takeda H, Sugimoto M, Mizoguchi Y, Hirano T, Itoh T, Watanabe T, Reed KM, Snelling WM, Kappes SM, Beattie CW, Bennett GL, Sugimoto Y. (2004) A comprehensive genetic map of the cattle genome based on 3802 microsatellites. Genome Res. 14(10A):1987-98.
  • Cushman JC (2004) C3 photosynthesis to Crassulacean acid metabolism shift in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum: A stress tolerance mechanism. Encyclo. Plant Crop Sci. DOI: 10.1081?E-EPCS, pp. 242-244.
  • Chehab EW, Patharkar OR, Hegeman AD, Taybi T, Cushman JC. (2004) Autophosphorylation and subcellular dynamics of a salt- and water deficit stress-induced calcium-dependent protein kinase from Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Plant Physiol. 135:1430-1446.
  • Kore-eda S, Cushman MA, Akselrod I, Bufford D, Fredrickson M, Clark E, Cushman JC (2004) Transcript profiling of salinity stress responses by large-scale expressed sequence tag analysis in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Gene. 341:83-92.
  • Harper JF, Breton G, Harmon A. (2004) Decoding Ca(2+) signals through plant protein kinases. Annu Rev Plant Biol.;55:263-88. Review.
  • Forde BG, Harper JF, Kochian L. (2004) Focus on plant nutrition. Plant Physiol.136(1):2437.
  • Dolan EA, Yelle RB, Beck BW, Fischer JT, Ichiye T. (2005) Protein control of electron transfer rates via polarization: molecular dynamics studies of rubredoxin. Biophys J. 86(4):2030-6.
  • Schook L, Beattie C, Beever J, Donovan S, Jamison R, Zuckermann F, Niemi S, Rothschild M, Rutherford M, Smith D. (2005) Swine in biomedical research: creating the building blocks of animal models. Anim Biotechnol. 16(2):183-90.
  • Liu WS, Eyer K, Yasue H, Roelofs B, Hiraiwa H, Shimogiri T, Landrito E, Ekstrand J, Treat M, Rink A, Yerle M, Milan D, Beattie CW. (2005) A 12,000-rad porcine radiation hybrid (IMNpRH2) panel refines the conserved synteny between SSC12 and HSA17. Genomics. 86(6):731-8.
  • Itoh T, Watanabe T, Ihara N, Mariani P, Beattie CW, Sugimoto Y, Takasuga A. (2005) A comprehensive radiation hybrid map of the bovine genome comprising 5593 loci. Genomics. 85(4):413-24.
  • Boxall SF, Foster JM, Bohnert HJ, Cushman JC, Nimmo HG, Hartwell J. (2005) Conservation and divergence of the central circadian clock in the stress-inducible CAM plant Mesembryanthemum crystallinum: clock operation in a CAM halophyte reveals clock compensation against abiotic stress. Plant Physiol. 137: 969-982.
  • Cushman JC (2005) Crassulacean acid metabolism: recent advances and future opportunities. Functional Plant Biology.32: 375-380.
  • Kore-eda S, Noake C, Ohishi M, Ohnishi J, Cushman JC (2005) Transcriptional regulation of organellar metabolite transporters during induction of crassulacean acid metabolism in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Functional Plant Biology. 32:451-466.
  • Gehrig, HH, Wood J, Cushman MA, Virgo A, Cushman JC, Winter K. (2005) Large gene family of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase in the Crassulacean acid metabolism plant Kalanchoe pinnata (Crassulaceae). Functional Plant Biology. 32: 467-472.
  • Goes da Silva F, Iandolino A, Lim H, Baek JM, Leslie A, Xu J, Cook DR, and Al-Kayal F, Bohlman MC, Cushman MA, Ergul A, Figueroa R, Kabuloglu EK, Osborne C, Rowe J, Tattersall EA, Cramer GR, Cushman JC (2005). Characterizing the grape transcriptome: analysis of ESTs from multiple Vitis species and development of a compendium of gene expression during berry development. Plant Physiol. 139: 574-597.
  • Tattersall EAR, Ergul A, AlKayal F, DeLuc L, Cushman JC, Grant R. Cramer (2005) Comparison of methods for isolating high-quality RNA from leaves of grapevine. Amer. J. Vitic. Enol. 56:400-406.
  • Cramer GR, Cushman JC, Schooley DA, Quilici D, Vincent D, Bohlman MC, Ergul A, Tattersall EAT, Tillett R, Evans J, Delacruz R, Schlauch K, Mendes P. (2005). Progress in bioinformatics - the challenge of integrating transcriptomic, proteomic and metabolomic information. Acta Hort 689: 417-425
  • Cramer, G.R., A. Ergul, D. Vincent, M.C. Bohlmann, J. Grimplet, E.A.R. Tattersall, R.L. Tillet, J. Evans, D. Quilici, D.A. Schooley, J.C. Cushman, K.A. Schlauch, and P. Mendes. 2005. Integrative functional genomics of abiotically-stressed grapevine: a system for discovery of gene and plant functions. Proceedings of the International Grape Genomics Symposium, St. Louis, Missouri, July 12-14, 2005, Eds, W. Qiu and L.G. Kovacs. pp 30 -37.
  • Rodriguez Milla MA, Uno Y, Townsend J, Maher E, Cushman JC (2005) Arabidopsis AtCPK11, a calcium-dependent protein kinase, phosphorylates AtDi19, a nuclear zinc finger protein. FEBS Lett. 580: 904-911.
  • Schiott M, Romanowsky SM, Baekgaard L, Jakobsen MK, Palmgren MG, Harper JF. (2004) A plant plasma membrane Ca2+ pump is required for normal pollen tube growth and fertilization. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 101(25):9502-7.
  • Christodoulou J, Malmendal A, Harper JF, Chazin WJ. (2004) Evidence for differing roles for each lobe of the calmodulin-like domain in a calcium-dependent protein kinase. J Biol Chem. 279(28):29092-100.
  • Hegeman AD, Harms AC, Sussman MR, Bunner AE, Harper JF. (2004) An isotope labeling strategy for quantifying the degree of phosphorylation at multiple sites in proteins. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom. 15(5):647-53.
  • Mittler R, Vanderauwera S, Gollery M, Van Breusegem F. (2004) Reactive oxygen gene network of plants. Trends Plant Sci. 9(10):490-8.
  • Hussain D, Haydon MJ, Wang Y, Wong E, Sherson SM, Young J, Camakaris J, Harper JF, Cobbett CS. (2004) P-type ATPase heavy metal transporters with roles in essential zinc homeostasis in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell. 16(5):1327-39.
  • Davletova S, Rizhsky L, Liang H, Shengqiang Z, Oliver DJ, Coutu J, Shulaev V, Schlauch K, Mittler R. (2004) Cytosolic ascorbate peroxidase 1 is a central component of the reactive oxygen gene network of Arabidopsis. Plant Cell. 17(1):268-81.
  • Kishore VK, Velasco P, Shintani DK, Rowe J, Rosato C, Adair N, Slabaugh MB, Knapp SJ. (2004) Conserved simple sequence repeats for the Limnanthaceae (Brassicales). Theor Appl Genet. 108(3):450-7.
  • Massaro RC, Lee LW, Patel AB, Wu DS, Yu MJ, Scott BN, Schooley DA, Schegg KM, Beyenbach KW. (2004) The mechanism of action of the antidiuretic peptide Tenmo ADFa in Malpighian tubules of Aedes aegypti. J Exp Biol. 207(Pt 16):2877-88.
  • Lombardi VC, Schooley DA (2004) A method for selective conjugation of an analyte to enzymes without unwanted enzyme-enzyme cross-linking. Anal Biochem. 331(1):40-5.
  • Chen C, Beck BW, Krause K, Pettitt BM. (2005) Solvent participation in Serratia marcescens endonuclease complexes. Proteins. Dec 14; [Epub ahead of print]
  • Bohnert HJ, Cushman JC (2002) Plants and environmental stress adaptation strategies. In Plant Biotechnology and transgenic plants, Oksman-Caldentey K-M, and Barz WH, eds. Marcel Dekker, New York, NY. pp, 635-664.
  • Michael J. Borrelli, Laura J Bernock, Jacques Landry, Douglas R Spitz, Lee A. Weber, Eileen Hickey, Michael L. Freeman, and Peter M. Corry. (2002) Stress protection by a fluorescent Hsp27 chimera that is independent of nuclear translocation or multimeric dissociation. Cell Stress and Chaperones. 7: 281-296.
  • Maxwell RA, Welch WH, Horodyski FM, Schegg KM, Schooley DA. (2002) Juvenile hormone diol kinase. II. Sequencing, cloning, and molecular modeling of juvenile hormone-selective diol kinase from Manduca sexta. J Biol Chem. 277(24):21882-90.
  • Johnson EC, Shafer OT, Trigg JS, Park J, Schooley DA, Dow JA, Taghert PH. (2005) A novel diuretic hormone receptor in Drosophila: evidence for conservation of CGRP signaling. J Exp Biol. 208(Pt 7):1239-46.
  • Tobe SS, Zhang JR, Schooley DA, Coast GM. (2005) A study of signal transduction for the two diuretic peptides of Diploptera punctata. Peptides. 26(1):89-98.
  • Maxwell RA, Welch WH, Schooley DA. (2002) Juvenile hormone diol kinase. I. Purification, characterization, and substrate specificity of juvenile hormone-selective diol kinase from Manduca sexta. J Biol Chem. 277(24):21874-81.
  • Te Brugge VA, Schooley DA, Orchard I. (2002) The biological activity of diuretic factors in Rhodnius prolixus. Peptides. 23(4):671-81.
  • Wiehart UI, Nicolson SW, Eigenheer RA, Schooley DA. (2002) Antagonistic control of fluid secretion by the Malpighian tubules of Tenebrio molitor: effects of diuretic and antidiuretic peptides and their second messengers. J Exp Biol. 205(Pt 4):493-501.
  • Eigenheer RA, Nicolson S, Schegg KM, Hull JJ, and Schooley DA. (2002). Identification of a potent antidiuretic factor from Tenebrio molitor. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 99, 84-89.
  • Gadgil C, Rink A, Beattie CW, Hu WS. (2002) A mathematical model for suppression subtractive hybridization. Comparative and Functional Genomics 3:405-422.
  • Gustin, M.S. J.A. Benesch, and G.R. Cramer. (2002) The effect of trifluoroacetic acid on plant growth and germination and soil microbial communities. Env Tox & Chem 21:640-647
  • Baxter IR, Young JC, Armstrong G, Foster N, Bogenschutz N, Cordova T, Peer WA, Hazen SP, Murphy AS, Harper JF. (2005) A plasma membrane H+-ATPase is required for the formation of proanthocyanidins in the seed coat endothelium of Arabidopsis thaliana. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 102(7):2649-54.
  • Chandran V, Stollar EJ, Lindorff-Larsen K, Harper JF, Chazin WJ, Dobson CM, Luisi BF, Christodoulou J. (2005) Structure of the Regulatory Apparatus of a Calcium-dependent Protein Kinase (CDPK): A Novel Mode of Calmodulin-target Recognition. J Mol Biol. Dec 20; [Epub ahead of print]
  • Eide DJ, Clark S, Nair TM, Gehl M, Gribskov M, Guerinot ML, Harper JF. (2005) Characterization of the yeast ionome: a genome-wide analysis of nutrient mineral and trace element homeostasis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genome Biol. 6(9):R77.
  • Harper JF, Harmon A. (2005) Plants, symbiosis and parasites: a calcium signalling connection. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 6(7):555-66. Review.
  • Suzuki N, Rizhsky L, Liang H, Shuman J, Shulaev V, Mittler R. (2005) Enhanced tolerance to environmental stress in transgenic plants expressing the transcriptional coactivator multiprotein bridging factor 1c. Plant Physiol.139(3):1313-22.
  • Davletova S, Schlauch K, Coutu J, Mittler R. (2005) The zinc-finger protein Zat12 plays a central role in reactive oxygen and abiotic stress signaling in Arabidopsis. Plant Physiol. 139(2):847-56.
  • Li S, Zhang QR, Xu WH, Schooley DA. (2005) Juvenile hormone diol kinase, a calcium-binding protein with kinase activity, from the silkworm, Bombyx mori. Insect Biochem Mol Biol. 35(11):1235-48.
  • Coast GM, Garside CS, Webster SG, Schegg KM, Schooley DA. (2005) Mosquito natriuretic peptide identified as a calcitonin-like diuretic hormone in Anopheles gambiae (Giles). J Exp Biol. 208(Pt 17):3281-91.
  • Te Brugge VA, Lombardi VC, Schooley DA, Orchard I. (2005) Presence and activity of a Dippu-DH31-like peptide in the blood-feeding bug, Rhodnius prolixus. Peptides. 26(1):29-42.
  • Cushman JC, Borland AM (2002) Induction of Crassulacean acid metabolism by water limitation. Plant Cell Environ. 25:295-310.
  • Cramer, G.R. (2002) Sodium-calcium interactions under salinity stress. In: Salinity. Environment-Plants-Molecules. Eds. A. Lauchli and U. Luttge. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, pp. 205-227
  • Cramer, G.R., and S. Quarrie. (2002) Abscisic acid is correlated with the leaf growth inhibition of four genotypes of maize differing in their response to salinity. Funct Plant Biol 29:111-115
  • Cramer, G.R. (2002) Response of ABA mutants of Arabidopsis to salinity. Funct Plant Biol 29:561-567
  • Cushman JC, Bohnert HJ (2002) Induction of Crassulacean acid metabolism by salinity molecular aspects. In: Salinity: Environment - Plants - Molecules. Eds. A. Lauchli and U. Luttge. Kluwer Academic. Publishers, Inc., Boston, MA., pp. 361-393.
  • Dodd AN, Griffiths H, Taybi T, Cushman JC, Borland AM (2002) Integrating diel starch metabolism with the circadian and environmental regulation of Crassulacean acid metabolism in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Planta 216(5):789-97.
  • Maxwell RA, Anderson RJ, Schooley DA. (2002) Simultaneous preparation of both enantiomers of juvenile hormones labeled at C-10 with tritium at high specific activity. Anal Biochem. 305(1):40-8.
  • Korke R, Rink A, Seow TK, Wong K, Beattie CW, Hu WS (2002). Integration of genomics and proteomics approaches to comprehend physiology of cells in bioprocessing. J. Biotechnology 94:73-92.Review.
  • Liu W-S, Beattie CW, Alexander LA, Ponce de Leon FA. (2002). A radiation hybrid map of the bovine Y chromosome. Mamm. Genome 13:320-326,
  • R A Narayanan, Anette Rink, Craig W Beattie and Wei-Shou Hu. (2002) Differential gene expression analysis during porcine hepatocyte spheroid formation. Mamm. Genome 13:515-523.
  • Rink, A, Santschi EM, Hess M, Eyer KE, Godfrey ML, Karayusuf EK, Milan D, Yerle M and Beattie CW. A first generation EST radiation hybrid comparative map of the porcine and human genome. Mamm. Genome 13:578-587, 2002.
  • Rink A, Santschi EM, Beattie CW. Normalized cDNA Libraries from a porcine model of orthopedic implant associated infection. Mammalian Genome 13:198-205, 2002.
  • Reed, KM, Ihara, N, Ponce de Leon, FA, Sonstegard, TS, Smith, TPL, Bennett, GL, Sugimoto, Y and Beattie, CW. Development of 47 new microsatellite markers from a BTA6 library. Animal Biotechnology 13:195-202, 2002.
  • Reed KM, Ihara N, Mariani P, Mendoza KM, Jensen LE, Bellavia R, Ponce de Leon FA, Bennett GL, Sugimoto Y, and Beattie CW. High-resolution genetic map of bovine chromosome 29 through focused marker development. Cytogenetics, Genome Research 96:210-216, 2002.
  • Rao, I.M. and G.R. Cramer. (2002) Plant nutrition and crop improvement in adverse soil conditions. In: Plants, Genes, and Crop Biotechnology. 2nd edition. M.J. Chrispeels & D.E. Sadava, Eds. Jones and Bartlett Publishers, Sudbury, MA. pp. 270-303
  • Soulages JL, Kim K, Walters C, Cushman JC (2002) Temperature-induced extended helix/random coil transitions in a Group 1 Late Embryogenesis Abundant Protein from Soybean. Plant Physiol. 128: 822-832.
  • Taybi T, Cushman JC, Borland AM (2002) Environmental, hormonal, and circadian regulation of Crassulacean acid metabolism expression. Functional Plant Biology. 29:669-678.
  • Taybi T, Cushman JC (2002) Abscisic acid Signaling and Protein Synthesis Requirements for CAM Induction in the Common Ice Plant. J. Plant Physiol. 159: 1235-1243.
  • Te Brugge VA, Schooley DA, Orchard I. (2002) The biological activity of diuretic factors in Rhodnius prolixus. Peptides. 23(4):671-81.
  • Shintani DK, DellaPenna D. (2002) The role of 2-methyl-6-phytylbenzoquinone methytransferase in determining tocopherol composition in Synechocystis sp. PCC6803. FEBS 511: 1-5
  • U. I. M. Wiehart, S. W. Nicolson, R. A. Eigenheer and D. A. Schooley, Antagonistic control of fluid secretion by the Malpighian tubules of Tenebrio molitor:effects of diuretic and antidiuretic peptides and their second messengers. J. Exp. Biol., 205, issue #4 (2002).
  • Cushman JC (2003) Functional Genomics of Plant Abiotic Stress Tolerance. In: Genomics of Plants and Fungi. Ed. R.A. Prade and H.J. Bohnert. Marcel Dekker, Inc. New York, NY. 18: 315-357.
  • Gollery M, Rector D, Lindelien J. (2002) TLFAM--a new set of protein family databases. OMICS. 6(1):35-7.
  • Cramer GR (2003) Differential effects of salinity on leaf elongation kinetics of three grass species. Plant and soil. 253: 233-244.
  • Dodd AN, Griffiths H, Taybi T, Cushman JC, Borland AM (2003) Integrating diel starch metabolism with the circadian and environmental regulation of Crassulacean acid metabolism in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum. Planta 216: 789-797
  • Soulages JL, Kim K, Arrese EL, Walters C, Cushman JC (2003) Conformation of a Group 2 Late Embryogenesis Abundant (LEA) Protein from Soybean: Evidence of Poly (L-Proline)-type II (PII) Structure. Plant Physiol. 131:963-975.
  • Abebe T, Guenzi AC, Martin B, Cushman JC (2003) Tolerance of mannitol-accumulating transgenic wheat to water stress and salinity. Plant Physiol. 131: 1748-1755.


Progress 01/01/04 to 12/31/04

Outputs
Funding for this EPSCOR infrastructure-building grant was used to foster integrative research in the area of abiotic stress. Another major success story to come out of the IAAS program was the awarding of a 4-year, $3.85 M NSF Plant Genome Program award made to Ron Mittler, Jeff Harper, Marty Gollery, and John Cushman entitled Integrating the Unknown-eome with Abiotic Stress Response Networks in Arabidopsis. The research award will be split with scientists at the University of California, Riverside, who will be collaborating on the research. The long-term goal of the proposed research is to facilitate the assignment of function to every gene in Arabidopsis thaliana with a specific focus on genes and networks that function in abiotic stress, such as chilling, water deficit, salt, flooding, high light and oxidative environments. Survival and growth of plants is dependent on their ability to cope with biotic and abiotic stress. It is clear that a plants stress response results from a complex set of changes in gene networks and metabolism. While 1000s of genes have been linked to stress networks, in only a few cases have their biochemical and genetic functions been elucidated. Startup funds were used to continue to support the research activities of two newly hired faculty members in the Department of Biochemistry who are leading experts on abiotic stress research: Dr. Ron Mittler and Dr.Jeff Harper. Significant equipment and instrumentation was purchased to outfit their labs at UNR. Start-up funds were also awarded to new principle investigators at UNLV and DRI.

Impacts
The IAAS program held its third Scientific Conference on Integrative Approaches to Abiotic Stress in May 20, 2004 at the North Tahoe Convention Center. More than 60 participants attended including students and scientists from UNR, UNLV, and the Desert Research Institute. Five graduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships in year 2. Each student was comentored by IAAS faculty mentors. Five undergraduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships in year 2. Each student worked in a specific laboratory mentored by IAAS faculty during the summer of 2004. This research training culminated in each student presenting a poster on their research activities on Aug. 10, 2004 at DRI. EPSCOR equipment funds were used primarily to create a state-of-the-art proteomics/metabolomics analysis facility and to purchase a new TimeLogic DeCypher accelerated programmable logic supercomputer and associated bioinformatics algorithms for conducting highspeed database searching located in the Nevada Bioinformatics Center at UNR. EPSCoR funding was also used to purchase and install an Agilent Bioanalyzer for quality control analysis of DNA, RNA, and protein samples submitted to the Nevada Genomic Center.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period


Progress 01/01/03 to 12/31/03

Outputs
Funding for this EPSCOR infrastructure-building grant was used to foster integrative research in the area of abiotic stress. A major success story to come out of the IAAS program was the awarding of a 4-year, $3.6 M NSF Plant Genome Program award made to Grant Cramer, John Cushman, Pedro Mendes, and David Schooley. This project is expected to enhance our understanding of the role that abiotic stress in the form of drought, salinity, and cold has on grape production and quality. This research will greatly facilitate future gene discovery and enable improvements to be made in both production efficiency and wine quality under environmentally adverse growing conditions. This award has also enable Nevada scientist to play a major role in the International Grape Genome Program (http://www.vitaceae.org/). The infrastructure enhancements made possible by the IAAS program also contributed to the successful award of a grant proposal to a new UNR faculty member in Biochemistry and IAAS participant, Dr. David Shintani, who was recently awarded a $375,000 grant from the NSF Metabolic Biochemistry Program to examine Thiamin Metabolism in Plants. Startup funds were used to hire two new faculty members in the Department of Biochemistry who are leading experts on abiotic stress research in plants: Dr. Ron Mittler and Dr.Jeff Harper. Significant equipment and instrumentation was purchased to outfit the Nevada Genomics and Proteomics and Proteomics/Mass Spectrometry Core facilities at UNR.

Impacts
The IAAS program held its second Scientific Conference on Integrative Approaches to Abiotic Stress in May 2003 in Las Vegas. More than 80 participants attended including students and scientists from UNR, UNLV, and the Desert Research Institute. Five graduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships in year 2. Each student was comentored by IAAS faculty mentors. Five undergraduate students were awarded IAAS Fellowships in year 2. Each student worked in a specific laboratory mentored by IAAS faculty during the summer of 2003. This research training culminated in each student presenting a poster on their research activities on Aug. 7, 2003 at DRI. EPSCOR equipment funds were used primarily to create a state-of-the-art protemics/metabolomics analysis facility at UNR. EPSCoR funding was also used to purchase and install an Affymetrix GeneChip fluidics station, hybridization oven, and chip scanner in the Nevada Genomic Center.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period


Progress 01/01/02 to 12/31/02

Outputs
We have begun to build up our competitive research programs in integrative approaches to abiotic stress by assembling and promoting interactions among a critical mass of investigators employing genomics technologies to address research questions about organismal interactions with stressful environments. We have done this in two ways. First, we have used EPSCoR fund to provide start-up funding for hiring four new faculty members with research interests related to abiotic stress. Two faculty have been hired at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV) and two searches are in progress at the University of Nevada-Reno (UNR). Second, we have improved inadequate infrastructure by installing controlled environment facilities and gene expression profiling instrumentation at UNLV and the Desert Research Institute (DRI), and proteomic/metabolomic mass spectrometry instrumentation, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis equipment, and a bioinformatics computational server at UNR. We have foster interactions between scientists working at the molecular genetic, biochemical, physiological, organismal, and ecological levels to force integration across multiple scales of biological complexity by holding an annual research symposium on integrated approaches to abiotic stress. The first symposium was held on May 9, 2002 at the Granlibakken Resort and Conference Center in Tahoe City, CA and was attended by over 80 participants. We provided opportunities for interaction among Nevada scientists by fostering new research programs on abiotic stress-related topics by funding three graduate stipends for three students who are being co-mentored by two faculty members with diverse research backgrounds. In addition, summer research stipends were provided for five undergraduate students to conduct research related to abiotic stress in a variety of model systems.

Impacts
The major impact this infrastructure award will have is to stimulate competitive research programs by providing competitive start-up funds to attract new faculty members with expertise in the area of abiotic stress biology. This award is also expected to improve the research infrastructure within Nevada by the acquisition of multi-user controlled environment facilities, cDNA microarray scanners, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis equipment, mass spectrometry instrumentation, and bioinformatics computational servers. Multidisciplinary interactions will be fostered by providing collaborative training activities among students and faculty through funding graduate fellowship and undergraduate summer research scholars programs. An annual research symposium is expected disseminate information about new developments in abiotic stress and functional genomics disciplines. The first annual symposium stimulated communication among Nevada scientists working in the area of molecular and physiological adaptation and increased the national and international recognition of their efforts.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period