|
|
|
Signal transduction processes
Helen R Irving
Vaccines against a range of human and animal diseases can be produced in genetically engineered plants. Further developments in plant biotechnology mean that genetically engineered plants can be an alternative source of many recombinant drugs (Walmsley & Arntzen (2000) Curr. Opin. Biotech. 11: 126-129). These developments will be enhanced if the molecular mechanism underlying plant growth and development are better manipulated. Research in my laboratory has revealed some of the fundamental signals operating in plant growth. For example, a role for G proteins was established in crop responses to the drought hormone abscisic acid (Irving (1998) Aust. J. Plant. Physiol. 25: 539-546). Also we demonstrated that Ca2+ changes in host plants are essential for the initiation of the Rhizobium-legume symbiosis (Gehring et al. (1997) Molec. Plant-Mic. Interac. 10: 791-802) and that this may involve activation of phospholipase C (Kelly and Irving (2001), Physiologia Plantarum 112).
Several projects examining signal transduction processes occurring in plant growth are available. This is a rapidly developing area of plant science that involves approaches ranging from biochemical to molecular to genetic. The work involves collaboration with groups at other Australian universities, South Africa and Switzerland.
|
