Improving crops by modifying dormancy

DAVIS E. HANKE, NATALIA MIELNICHUK, MAYDELÍN DORADO-BERMÚDEZ, HANNA ROVENICH & JEN BROMLEY

Cambridge

Simposio; Cambridge Partnership for Plant Science Symposium: Food Security - From Lab to Field; 2010

Cambridge Partnership for Plant Science

In the endodormant state, plants, organs and tissues, remain over months in a state of suspended animation, with minimal metabolism and zero growth and development even though the environment is optimal for growth. A wide range of conditions are tolerated over that time with minimal or no deterioration in product quality. The best known mechanism for endodormancy maintenance involves ABA as a red 'stop' light for growth. Previous work in the lab placed cytokinins as a green 'go' light for growth at the end dormancy. It was shown that dormancy is imposed by the accumulation of a cytokinin-sequestering protein: CKP, a high affinity cytokinin-binding protein that accumulates in stolon tips from tuber initiation. Evidences show that over expression of CKP prolongs tuber dormancy. Since data suggested that this mechanism may control dormancy in other, possibly all, tissues, we are currently investigating the contribution of CKP in Arabidopsis, focusing on seed and seedling dormancy.