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CSB Departmental Seminar – Professor Katharina Braeutigam, Department of Biology, University of Toronto Mississauga

March 15, 2019 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

CSB Departmental Seminar

Professor Katharina Braeutigam,

Department of Biology

University of Toronto Mississauga

“Genome interpretation in trees – genetic and epigenetic factors in stress responses and development”

Friday March 15, 2019
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at RW 432
Host:
Professor Arneet Saltzman
arneet.saltzman@utoronto.ca
Abstract:

Almost all cells in an organism contain the same genetic information. Nevertheless the genome shows remarkable plasticity in its interpretation. Complex organisms are characterized by impressive developmental transitions and can exhibit an astonishing degree of plasticity in response to their environment.
During their long life span, forest tree species are likely to encounter frequent environmental changes, and efficient responses are of paramount importance for individual trees and our forest, e.g. in light of recent and predicted climate change.
Our work studies the ability of trees to plastically respond to key external stresses such as drought or salinity, or internal signals involved in developmental transitions. It integrates physiological responses, genomic influences and genome-wide epigenetic patterns. Recent work uncovered not only diversity of organ and genotype-specific adjustments in physiology and transcriptome, but also widespread epigenetic variability that paralleled these responses. The work suggests a molecular mechanism for adding a layer of plasticity in long-lived organisms, and it contributes to our understanding of plant-environment interactions, with applications related to genotype selection for current and future climates.

Details

Date:
March 15, 2019
Time:
11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Venue

Ramsay Wright Building, Room 432
25 Harbord St.
Toronto, ON M5S 3G5 Canada