Download U29 Bio 517 01

Bio 517
Fall, 2013
Bio 517-Plant Molecular Biology
(Sept 8 – Dec 15, 2013)
Instructor:
Jintai Huang, Ph.D.
Ph: (636) 737-6102 (O); (636) 675-2189 (H)
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
Office hours: by appointment
Time and Place:
6:00-8:30 pm, CST, Mondays,
Room GG2411-F, Chesterfield Village, Monsanto.
Required Textbook:
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of Plants, ed. Buchanan BB, Gruissem W
and Jones RL, 2000. Published by American Society of Plant Physiologists
(Note: Any supplemental readings will be provided one week prior to the lecture.)
A significant amount of the lecture materials will be from literatures.
Recommended Readings:
Molecular Genetics of Plant Development, Howell, 1998
Plant Physiology, Taiz and Zeiger, 5th edition, 2010
Plant Cell Biology, ed. Dashek and Harrison, 2006
Genetics: From Genes to Genomes, 4th edition, Leland Hartwell et al., 2010
Scope of the Course:
The course is designed to focus on plant growth & development and plant &
environment interactions at the cellular and molecular level. The course
emphasizes on gene expression and regulation underlying the molecular
mechanisms as well as application of molecular biology in plant biotechnology.
Format of the Course:
Lecture with classroom discussions
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Bio 517
Fall, 2013
Syllabus
Sept. 8
Plant and cell architecture
 cell walls and membranes (section 2.1 - 2.5; 1.1 - 1.3)
 cell compartmentalization (1.4; 1.8; 1.10; 1.11)
 cross talk between organelles: retrograde regulation
 genetic transformation of plant cells
Sept. 15
Organization and processing of genetic information
 the central dogma (6.1; 6.2; 6.6 - 6.8; 9.1) vs. the RNA world
 chromosomes and genome organization (7.1; 7.2)
 organization and expression of plant gene (7.4.4 - 7.4.8)
 chromatin organization and gene expression (7.5)
 epigenetics (7.6; 18.1.3)
 function of small RNAs in plant development
 transposons and gene tagging (7.3)
 plastid and mitochondrial genomes (6.5; 11.8.5)
 RNA editing (6.8.7)
Sept. 22
Biochemistry and molecular biology of cell reproduction
 control of protein synthesis and degradation (9.2; 9.5)
 post-translational modification of proteins (9.4)
 cell division (11.4)
 cell cycle control (11.1 - 11.3; 11.5 - 11.8)
Sept. 29
Intracellular protein trafficking (4.1 - 4.5)
 sorting machinery
 nucleus protein import/export
 mitochondrion protein import/export
 plastid protein import
 ER and protein sorting
 mRNA localization
 Unfolded Protein Response
Oct. 6
Photosynthesis
 an overview (12.1)
 photophosphorylation (12.6.1; 12.6.3; 12.7)
 carbon fixation in C3 plants (12.8.1 - 12.8.4)
 carbon fixation in C4 plants(12.9.2 - 12.9.6)
 converting C3 to C4 by genetic engineering and/or other approaches?
 assimilation and transport of photosynthetic products (13.6)
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Bio 517
Fall, 2013
Oct. 13
Plant reproduction
 gametes formation (19.4)
 pollen-stigma interaction and fertilization (19.6; 19.8)
 self-incompatibility (19.7)
 seed formation (19.9)
 seed storage proteins (19.10.4 - 19.10.10)
 cytoplasmic male sterility and genetic male sterility (19.5)
Oct. 20
Mid-term exam
Oct. 27
Signal transduction
 an introduction to signal transduction (18.1)
 signal receptors (18.2)
 G-proteins and phospholipid signaling (18.4)
 second messengers (18.6; 18.6)
 protein kinases (18.7)
 peptide hormones in higher plants
Nov. 3
Flower development
 flower induction (19.2.1; 19.1.1 - 19.1.5)
 the ABC model and beyond (19.3.1)
 molecular genetics of flower development (19.3.2 - 19.3.4)
 programmed cell death and reproductive development (20.2.1)
Nov. 10
Plant hormone regulated gene expression
 gibberellin (17.1)
 abscisic acid (17.2)
 ethylene (17.5)
 brassinosteroid (17.6)
 jasmonic acid/salicylic acid (17.8)
Nov. 17
Agriculture biotechnology, Part I: Plant response to biotic stress
 an overview (21.1)
 defense responses (21.2; 21.6)
 molecular mechanisms of plant pathogen interaction (21.3 - 21.5)
 hormone and acquired systemic resistance (17.8; 17.9)
Nov. 24
Agriculture biotechnology, Part II: Plant response to abiotic stress
 plant exposure to stresses (22.1)
 high-temperature induced gene expression (22.9)
 low-temperature induced gene expression (22.6)
 water-stress (22.2 -22.5) and water-stress tolerance
 heavy metal induced gene expression and bioremediation
Dec. 1
Agriculture biotechnology, Part III: Genetically modified plants
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Bio 517
Fall, 2013
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regulation of transgene expression
heat-tolerant transgenic plants
salt-tolerant transgenic plants
lipid modification (10.11)
genetic engineering of male sterility
Dec. 8
Agriculture biotechnology, Part IV: Genetically modified plants (cont’d)
 herbicide tolerant transgenic plants
 insect tolerant transgenic plants
 nutritional quality: the golden rice as an example
 plants as vehicles for production of pharmaceutical proteins
 basic genomics and proteomoics
 GMO and related ethical and environmental issues
Dec. 15
Final exam
Exams and Grading:
One midterm and one final exam are required. Grades will be based on the midterm
exam (40%), final exam (60%). The final exam is cumulative; however, the content of
the final will be weighed heavily toward materials covered during the second half of the
semester.
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