March 2013 - Seminars - maillist.psb.ugent.be

Upcoming seminars March
by Delphine Verspeel 19 Jan '15

19 Jan '15

Dear All, Enclosed you can find our upcoming seminars for March. Kind regards, Delphine ___________________________________________ Delphine Verspeel Administrative Assistant VIB, Department of Plant Systems Biology Ghent University Technologiepark 927 9052 Gent Belgium Phone: +32/9/33.13.800 Fax: +32/9/33.13.809 Http://www.psb.ugent.be despe(a)psb.vib-ugent.be

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PSB event reminder
by contact＠psb.vib-ugent.be 31 Mar '13

31 Mar '13

Calendar Name: seminars Scheduled for: Tuesday, April 2 2013, 14:00 - 15:30 Event text: Dr Peter Bozhkov Department of Plant Biology and Forest Genetics Uppsala BioCenter Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Linnean Center for Plant Biology Uppsala SWEDEN Details: �Autophagy: a common mediator of cell death and organismal longevity in plants� ABSTRACT Animals have evolved sophisticated machinery to remove apoptotic bodies and clean up necrotic debris for damping inflammatory response. Plants appear more pragmatic, as they utilize dying cells and cell corpses to construct their bodies, as well as to store and transport nutrients, growth factors, and secondary metabolites. The presence of rigid cell walls and the absence of phagocytosis permit cell corpses to stay post-mortem for a very long time. Disassembly of plant cells during developmental programmed cell death (PCD) is likewise a slow process, which can take up to several days. This mode of PCD is reliant on the gradual engulfment of the cytoplasm by the lytic vacuoles and is hence called vacuolar cell death. We have found that autophagy � a major cellular catabolic process - plays a central role in the execution of vacuolar cell death in the Norway spruce embryo-suspensors. The role of autophagy is cell-autonomous, since down-regulation of ATG genes specifically in the suspensor cells acts as a switch from vacuolar cell death to necrosis, which impairs embryonic patterning and leads to developmental arrest. It has become well known in the last few years that yeasts, worms, flies and mammals with enhanced level of basal autophagy live longer, whereas suppression of autophagy results in premature death or shortened lifespan. Current studies in my laboratory establish autophagy as an important process in the control of plant phenology and longevity. We have found that changes in the expression of some ATG genes can modulate autophagic flux in the leaves of Arabidopsis, which in turn affects phenology and lifespan of the plants. Interestingly, manipulation of both autophagic flux and organismal lifespan can also be achieved in wild type Columbia plants by changing their caloric status through increasing or decreasing light intensity.

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Seminar Dr Peter Bozhkov on Tuesday, April 2 at 2 pm
by Delphine Verspeel 27 Mar '13

27 Mar '13

You are receiving this e-mail because you subscribed to our seminars announcements and reminders service at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/listinfo/seminars . If you do not wish to receive this information anymore, please unsubscribe from future mailings at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/options/seminars . cid:946540515@15122008-0D1CPSBcid:946540515@15122008-0D23 VIB - Department of Plant Systems Biology Technologiepark 927 B - 9052 Gent/Zwijnaarde Phone: +32 9 33 13 800 Fax: +32 9 33 13 809 Http://www.psb.vib-ugent.be

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PSB event reminder
by contact＠psb.vib-ugent.be 26 Mar '13

26 Mar '13

Calendar Name: seminars Scheduled for: Tuesday, March 26 2013, 14:00 - 15:30 Event text: Dr Dani�le Werck Institute of Plant Molecular Biology CNRS UPR 2357 Strasbourg FRANCE Details: �Versatility and fast evolution of the cytochrome P450 enzymes in the metabolism of monoterpenols� ABSTRACT The sequencing of plant genomes has revealed that cytochromes P450 (CYPs) form the largest family of plant enzymes in secondary metabolism and that most of their functions were still unknown. This pointed to a very poor understanding of the plant metabolism. We therefore designed complementary strategies to track the overlooked aspects of the secondary metabolism in the model plant Arabidospsis thaliana. One of them is a predictive map of P450 functions in plant metabolism, based on the analysis of gene (co)-expression in publicly available Affymetrix ATH1 microarray data (http://www-ibmp.u-strasbg.fr/~CYPedia/) Based on CYPedia predictions, a group of co-expressed terpene synthases (TPSs) and CYPs were predicted to be involved in common floral terpenoid metabolism. All four genes were found mainly expressed upon anthesis in the stamen and petal. Investigation of the encodedenzymes in recombinant systems (yeast and Nicotiana benthamiana) and analysis of null and overexpressor mutants revealed new functions of TPS and P450 enzymes in the metabolism of linalool and derived compounds. This work was extended to a more systematic exploration of the family of CYP76 enzymes in Arabidopsis and Catharanthus roseus (in the latter case in connexion with the metabolism of secoirido�ds), which revealed functional versatility, redundancy, specialisation and fast evolution of monoterpenol oxydases, as well as their role in herbicide metabolism.

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PSB event reminder
by contact＠psb.vib-ugent.be 24 Mar '13

24 Mar '13

Calendar Name: seminars Scheduled for: Tuesday, March 26 2013, 14:00 - 15:30 Event text: Dr Dani�le Werck Institute of Plant Molecular Biology CNRS UPR 2357 Strasbourg FRANCE Details: �Versatility and fast evolution of the cytochrome P450 enzymes in the metabolism of monoterpenols� ABSTRACT The sequencing of plant genomes has revealed that cytochromes P450 (CYPs) form the largest family of plant enzymes in secondary metabolism and that most of their functions were still unknown. This pointed to a very poor understanding of the plant metabolism. We therefore designed complementary strategies to track the overlooked aspects of the secondary metabolism in the model plant Arabidospsis thaliana. One of them is a predictive map of P450 functions in plant metabolism, based on the analysis of gene (co)-expression in publicly available Affymetrix ATH1 microarray data (http://www-ibmp.u-strasbg.fr/~CYPedia/) Based on CYPedia predictions, a group of co-expressed terpene synthases (TPSs) and CYPs were predicted to be involved in common floral terpenoid metabolism. All four genes were found mainly expressed upon anthesis in the stamen and petal. Investigation of the encodedenzymes in recombinant systems (yeast and Nicotiana benthamiana) and analysis of null and overexpressor mutants revealed new functions of TPS and P450 enzymes in the metabolism of linalool and derived compounds. This work was extended to a more systematic exploration of the family of CYP76 enzymes in Arabidopsis and Catharanthus roseus (in the latter case in connexion with the metabolism of secoirido�ds), which revealed functional versatility, redundancy, specialisation and fast evolution of monoterpenol oxydases, as well as their role in herbicide metabolism.

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Seminar Dr Danièle Werck on Tuesday, March 26 at 2 pm
by Delphine Verspeel 13 Mar '13

13 Mar '13

You are receiving this e-mail because you subscribed to our seminars announcements and reminders service at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/listinfo/seminars . If you do not wish to receive this information anymore, please unsubscribe from future mailings at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/options/seminars . cid:946540515@15122008-0D1CPSBcid:946540515@15122008-0D23 VIB - Department of Plant Systems Biology Technologiepark 927 B - 9052 Gent/Zwijnaarde Phone: +32 9 33 13 800 Fax: +32 9 33 13 809 Http://www.psb.vib-ugent.be

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PSB event reminder
by contact＠psb.vib-ugent.be 12 Mar '13

12 Mar '13

Calendar Name: seminars Scheduled for: Tuesday, March 12 2013, 14:00 - 15:30 Event text: Dr Staffan Persson Max-Planck-Institute for Molecular Plant Physiology Potsdam GERMANY Details: �A blueprint for cellulose synthesis in higher plants� ABSTRACT Cellulose is one of the most abundant and important biopolymer on our planet. It provides rigidity for anisotropic cell growth and plant morphology, and constitutes an essential raw material for many important industrial applications, including biofuels and materials. Cellulose is synthesized by plasma membrane located cellulose synthase (CesA) proteins that track along cortical microtubules in elongating interphase cells. We discovered the protein (CSI1/POM2) that provides the functional link between the CesAs and the microtubules. This discovery was partly based on the similar expression, or co-expression of the CSI1/POM2 gene and the CesA genes. Interestingly, we have found that many genes that are co-expressed with the CesA genes indeed are important for cellulose production. We extended this analysis and found that certain patterns of functionally related genes formed co-expressed gene modules, and that these modules have been duplicated and subsequently sub-functionalized many times. Through evolutionary estimates we could furthermore conclude that these duplication events were associated with specific events during plant evolution. We propose that plants use the duplication of co-expressed gene modules to create new functions through neo- or sub-functionalization of members in the modules, and that this may serve as a basis for the development of new biological processes in plants.

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PSB event reminder
by contact＠psb.vib-ugent.be 10 Mar '13

10 Mar '13

Calendar Name: seminars Scheduled for: Tuesday, March 12 2013, 14:00 - 15:30 Event text: Dr Staffan Persson Max-Planck-Institute for Molecular Plant Physiology Potsdam GERMANY Details: �A blueprint for cellulose synthesis in higher plants� ABSTRACT Cellulose is one of the most abundant and important biopolymer on our planet. It provides rigidity for anisotropic cell growth and plant morphology, and constitutes an essential raw material for many important industrial applications, including biofuels and materials. Cellulose is synthesized by plasma membrane located cellulose synthase (CesA) proteins that track along cortical microtubules in elongating interphase cells. We discovered the protein (CSI1/POM2) that provides the functional link between the CesAs and the microtubules. This discovery was partly based on the similar expression, or co-expression of the CSI1/POM2 gene and the CesA genes. Interestingly, we have found that many genes that are co-expressed with the CesA genes indeed are important for cellulose production. We extended this analysis and found that certain patterns of functionally related genes formed co-expressed gene modules, and that these modules have been duplicated and subsequently sub-functionalized many times. Through evolutionary estimates we could furthermore conclude that these duplication events were associated with specific events during plant evolution. We propose that plants use the duplication of co-expressed gene modules to create new functions through neo- or sub-functionalization of members in the modules, and that this may serve as a basis for the development of new biological processes in plants.

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Seminar Dr Staffan Persson on Tuesday, March 12 at 2 pm
by Delphine Verspeel 01 Mar '13

01 Mar '13

You are receiving this e-mail because you subscribed to our seminars announcements and reminders service at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/listinfo/seminars . If you do not wish to receive this information anymore, please unsubscribe from future mailings at https://maillist.psb.ugent.be/mailman/options/seminars . cid:946540515@15122008-0D1CPSBcid:946540515@15122008-0D23 VIB - Department of Plant Systems Biology Technologiepark 927 B - 9052 Gent/Zwijnaarde Phone: +32 9 33 13 800 Fax: +32 9 33 13 809 Http://www.psb.vib-ugent.be

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