Jocelyn Malamy, University of Chicago
Associate Professor
Chicago, Illinois
jmalamy@bsd.uchicago.edu
Office:
(773) 702-4651
Bio/Research
My lab focuses on the regulation of organogenesis in plants, using the roots of Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system. Plant root systems are developmentally plastic, and respond to environmental conditions by adding lateral roots to the system at appropriate locations. We characterized lateral ...
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Bio/Research
My lab focuses on the regulation of organogenesis in plants, using the roots of Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system. Plant root systems are developmentally plastic, and respond to environmental conditions by adding lateral roots to the system at appropriate locations. We characterized lateral root formation in detail, and showed that there are several developmental stages that can be independently regulated in root organogenesis. Our studies defined a putative nitrate transporter as a component of a signaling pathway coordinating lateral root initiation with nutritional cues, demonstrating for the first time that nutrient transporters in plants may have signaling roles independent of nutrient transport. We also identified sugars in the shoot as a critical long-distance regulator of lateral root development post-emergence. This finding suggests that root system development is coordinated with shoot system development via the system movement of sucrose in the phloem. This is consistent with our recent finding that correct development of the phloem and phloem delivery to the root tip is essential for lateral root formation and subsequent growth. Recently, we extended our studies to the process of root and shoot regeneration from cultured root explants. Regeneration originates from the same cells that give rise to lateral roots, and we have demonstrated a role for Polycomb proteins in the ease of trans-differentiation of these root cells to shoot cells.
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