This National Science Foundation Project Grant of $818,368 supports research into the extraordinary connections between flavonol and benzoate metabolism at the University of Florida from May 2022 through April 2025. The goal is to elucidate how plants and some bacteria degrade flavonols and use the breakdown products to make crucial molecules like antioxidants, antimicrobial compounds, and precursors for photosynthesis, respiration, vitamin biosynthesis, and biopolymer assembly. The research will combine genomics, genetics, computing, and chemistry to identify enzymes and carriers involved in flavonol catabolism pathways. It will also explore synthetic biology strategies to manipulate flavonol chemistry in plants, with the potential to benefit crop stress resistance, photosynthetic efficiency, and carbon sequestration. As part of the NSF Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074), this award supports the foundation's mission to advance basic biological sciences knowledge and strengthen the U.S. science enterprise.
Generated 1/7/24, 4:36 AM