Root-to-shoot coordination of Jasmonate-mediated responses

• Applicant: Dr. Debora Gasperini
• Subject Area: Plant Genetics and Genomics ; Plant Physiology
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 495483080

This proposal aims to characterize how stress responses occurring in roots are integrated with shoots to ensure whole-plant acclimation. The project will specifically focus on the stress hormone Jasmonate, that through its biologically active JA-Ile conjugate, is essential to protect plants against chewing herbivores, necrotrophic pathogens, RNA viruses as well as abiotic stresses such mechanical wounding, drought and elevated salinity. Although environmental stresses can induce JA-Ile production in Arabidopsis roots, very little is known about the physiological relevance of endogenous JA-Ile production in roots. However, a growing body of ecological evidence indicates that activation of JA-Ile signalling in roots is pivotal to accomplish whole-plant immune responses including leaf defense. Through the use of mutant plants with constitutive root JA-Ile production we have uncovered that a JA-Ile-dependent root signal relocates from roots to shoots and regulates rosette growth and defense responses against insect herbivores. Therefore, unveiling the roles of root JA-Ile production and downstream molecular components that enable root-to-shoot communication represents a fundamental opportunity to understand inter-organ coordination for harnessing plant resilience. This proposal thus aims to identify the JA-dependent root-derived signals acting as inter-organ coordinators, and uncover their mode of action. JA responses are notoriously less studied in roots than in shoots, and the identification of root-derived signals that redistribute across the plant to orchestrate whole plant coordination could not only provide novel fundamental evidence but also provide optimization opportunities for increasing plant resilience in changing environments.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants