BIOLOGY 344 PLANT DEVELOPMENT

(Or, How to Build a Plant)

Spring 2003

READINGS:

Text: Molecular Genetics of Plant Development by Stephen H. Howell.

Optional: Plant Physiology by Taiz and Zeiger (helpful if you would like a broader reference on how plants function)

Articles: This course is based on the primary literature in plant developmental biology with background information provided by our text. Journal articles required for the course are provided as PDF files on Fabio in the Bio344_S02 folder. They are identified by the first author’s name Please bring copies of the articles we are working on to class. There are color figures in many of them and it is most helpful to print the articles on a color printer.

It is important that you read the assigned materials before coming to class!

CLASS COMMUNICATIONS:

We have a mail list for the class. You can post messages to the entire class, including questions about readings you would like to discuss. There will also be a web page for the course that you can get to via the Biology Department home page.

OFFICE HOURS:

Monday 2-3 PM, Tuesdays 10:30-11:30 and by appointment.

(Office hours may occasionally be cancelled for comps talks)

Office - Hulings 308, Phone - x4391 or Laird 115, Phone –x4191

Note: I am generally in Laird M, F mornings, and all day W. Other times I should

be in Hulings.

e-mail - ssinger@carleton.edu

Home phone - 645-6729 (please don’t call after 9 PM)

Please meet with me before giving your presentation!

DATE TOPIC / REQUIRED READING

4/1

Introduction to plant development

Singer, S.R. 2003 An overview of plant development. In S. Gilbert (ed.) Developmental Biology, 7th ed., Sinauer, pp. 649-681.

Howell: pp. xvii-xvii (gene nomenclature, will be useful for rest of term) and Chapter 1

4/3 Embryogenesis

Howell – Chapter 3

Golden, T.A., S. E. Schauer, J.D. Lang, S. Pien, A.R. Mushegian, U. Grossniklaus, D.W. Meinke, and A. Ray. 2003 Short Integuments/Suspensor1/Carpel Factory, a Dicer homolog, is a maternal effect gene required for embryo development in Arabidopsis. Plant Physiology 130:808-822.

4/8 Student presentations

Higashiyama et al. (2001) Pollen tube attraction by the synergid cell. Science 293:1480-1483

Presenter: Pat

Facilitator: Susan

Williams and Friedman (2002) Identification of diploid endosperm in an early angiosperm lineage. Nature 415: 522-525

Presenter: Andrew

Facilitator: Ann

4/10 Role of Cell Lineage in Plant Development

Howell – Chapter 2

Poethig, R.S. (1987) Clonal analysis of cell lineage patterns in plant development. Amer. J. Bot. 74: 581-594

4/15 Student presentations

McDaniel, C.N., R.S. Poethig (1988) Cell-lineage patterns in the shoot apical meristem of the germinating maize embryo. Planta 175: 13-22

Note: This article is not available as a PDF (see instructor)

Presenter: Adam

Facilitator: Susan

Marcotrigiano, M. (2000) Herbivory could unlock mutations sequesterd in stratified shoot apices of genetic mosaics. American Journal of Botany 87: 355–361

Presenter: Misty

Facilitator: Andrew

4/17 Root and Shoot Meristems

Howell – Chapter 5 through p. 120, chapter 12

Benfey, P. (1999) Is the shoot a root with a view? Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 2: 39-43

4/22 Student presentations

Lee and Schiefelbein (2002) Cell pattern in Arabidopsis root epidermis determined by lateral inhibition with feedback. Plant Cell 14: 611-618

Presenter: Andrew

Facilitator: Ezra

Friml, J., Benkova E., Blilou I., Wisniewska J., Hamann T., Ljung K., Woody S., Sandberg G., Scheres B., Jürgens G., Palme K. (2002). AtPIN4 mediates sink-driven auxin gradients and root patterning in Arabidopsis. Cell 108: 661-673

Presenter: Alden

Facilitator: Susan

4/24 Catch up day – no official class meeting. Please work on your glossary and

“Tool Kit” assignments described below. This will be helpful in preparing for your take-home midterm.

4/29 Student presentations

McConnell and Barton (1998) Leaf polarity and meristem formation in Arabidopsis. Development 125: 2335-2942

Presenter: Ann

Facilitator: Adam

Yu et al. (2000) POLTERGEIST functions to regulate meristem development downstream of the CLAVATA loci. Development 127:

1661-1670

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Alden

5/1 Leaf Initiation, Phyllotaxis, and Morphogenesis

Howell – pp. 121-129, Chapter 6

Bharathan and Sinha (2001) The regulation of compound leaf development. Plant Physiol. 127: 1533-1538

5/6 Student presentations:

Bharathan, B., T.E. Goliber, C. Moore, S. Kessler, T. Pham, N Sinha (2002) Homologies in leaf form inferred from KNOX1 gene expression during development. Science 296: 1858-1860

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Alden

Kim et al. (2001) Developmental changes due to long-distance movement of a homeobox fusion transcript in tomato. Science 293: 287-289

Presenter: Pat

Facilitator: Ann

5/8 Transition to Flowering

Howell – pp. 129-132 and Chapter 7, skim chapter4 for general information on light regulation of development (not specific to flowering)

Blazquez and Weigel (2000) Integration of floral inductive signals in Arabidopsis. Nature 404: 889-92

5/13 Student presentations

Vega et al. (2002) The early phase change gene in maize. Plant Cell 14: 133-147

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Misty

Moon, Y., L. Chen, R. L. Pan, H. Chang, T. Zhu, D.M. Maffeo, Z.R. Sung 2003 EMF genes maintain vegetative development by repressing the flower program in Arabidopsis. Plant cell 15: 681-693.

Presenter: Ezra

Facilitator: Pat

5/15 Student presentations

Samach et al. (2000) Distinct roles of CONSTANS target genes in reproductive development of Arabidopsis. Science 288: 1613-1616

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Andrew

Ferrandiz et al. (2000) Redundant regulation of meristem identity and plant architecture by FRUITFUL, APETELA1 and CAULIFLOWER.

Development 127: 725-734

Presenter: Ann

Facilitator: Susan

5/20 Making Flowers

Howell – Chapter 8

5/22 Student presentations

Jack (2001) Relearning our ABCs: new twists on an old model. Trends in Plant Science 6: 310-316

Presenter: Misty

Facilitator: Adam

Jenik and Irish (2001) The Arabidopsis floral homeotic gene APETELA3 differentially regulates intercellular signaling required for petal and stamen development. Development 128: 13-23

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Ezra

5/27 Student presentations

Ng, M. and M.F. Yanofsky (2001) Activation of the Arabidopsis B class homeotic genes by Apetala1. Plant Cell 13: 739-753

Presenter: Susan

Facilitator: Susan

Zik, M., V.F. Irish (2003) Global identification of target genes regulated by APETALA3 and PISTILLATA floral homeotic gene action. Plant Cell 15:207-222

Presenter: Alden

Facilitator: Susan

5/29 Evolution of Inflorescences and Flowers

Kramer and Irish (2000) Evolution of the petal and stamen developmental programs: Evidence from comparative studies of the lower eudicots and basal angiosperms. Int. J. Plant Sci. 161: 29-40

Donoghue et al. (1998) Phylogeny and the evolution of flower symmetry in the Asteridae. Trends in Plant Science. 3: 311-317

6/2 Student presentations

Purugganan et al. (2000) Variation and selection at the CAULIFLOWER floral homeotic gene accompanying the evolution of domesticated Brassica oleracea. Genetics 155: 855-862

Presenter: Ezra

Facilitator: Misty

Ratcliffe et al. (1998) A common mechanism controls the life cycle and architecture of plants. Development 125: 1609-1615

Presenter: Adam

Facilitator: Pat

PLANT DEVELOPMENT

GRADING POLICY

ASSIGNMENT % FINAL GRADE

Presentations (2) 20

Discussion Facilitator (2) 10

Class Participation* 10

Glossary** 10

“Toolkit”** 10

Midterm (take-home) - due Thurs. May 1 20 in class (will be handed out

Thurs. May 8 in class)

Final Project – due Monday June 9 20

* We’ll talk about what class participation involves the first day. Showing up is half the battle. The second component is asking questions you are genuinely curious about or proposing an idea or model that you’ve come up with (even if you’re not very confident in its validity). Participation points are not based on the number of words you utter per class, but rather a willingness to engage in the discussion (this includes saying “you lost me 5 minutes ago!). As Arthur Hays Saltzberger (NY Times publisher from 1935-1961) so aptly put it, “I believe in an open mind, but not so open that your brains fall out.”

** Projects to be worked on throughout the course of the term and due the last day of class – June 3