WP 2 Discovery of adaptive capacities to ensure basic and applied outcomes
Leader Dr. Francisco M Canovas (UMA)
Objectives:
Foster a wide range of genomic-based approaches for the study of the functional regulation of growth and adaptive responses to abiotic stresses. This project will complement the study of the response of conifers to biotic stresses, which have been targeted in recent 7FP EC granted projects, such as ISEFOR (Increasing sustainability of European forests: Modelling for security against invasive pests and pathogens under climate change) and RePHRAME (Refinement and delivery of improved methods for detection and management of Pinewood nematode).
Main focus
- Transcriptome sequencing for protein coding gene annotation, transcript expression profiling and transcriptome dynamics
- Small non-coding RNA profiling and the discovery of novel small RNA genes
- Understanding the transcription regulatory network
- Epigenetic dynamics of candidate genes associated with traits of interest
Pinus pinaster and Pinus sylvestris will be used as model species to analyse "Transcriptome for function-trait relationship of growth and adaptive responses" while Pinus pinaster, Pinus sylvestris and Picea abies will be used to study "Functional Switches in Gene Regulation: Molecular Plasticity associated with growth and adaptive response"
Traits
Different adaptive traits will be functionally dissected using species that have developed adaptive mechanisms: growth, drought response (Pinus pinaster) and cold acclimation (Pinus sylvestris and Picea abies). Results will be analyzed using information generated not only in the frame of this proposal but also by Swedish project, Plant-KBBE-2009 SUSTAINPINE, DIGENFOR, NOVELTREE and TreeSNIPs projects, as well as the NoE EVOLTREE, and CSA FoREsTTraC, as well as different national projects and recently found epigenetic related microRNAs and target genes from ongoing projects in NFLI.
