This National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) Project Grant award of $337,667 to North Carolina State University (NC State) is focused on developing and optimizing an inducible protein degradation system called E3-DART to enhance the study of protein function in plant cells. The key objectives are to: 1) Create a ligand-inducible version of the E3-DART system, 2) Develop complementary recombinant tools to control E3-DART activity, and 3) Demonstrate proof-of-concept applications of E3-DART to study endomembrane protein function and secretory protein trafficking in plants. This work aims to provide plant biologists with an innovative tool to dynamically control protein abundance and gain deeper insights into fundamental cellular processes in plants, with potential future applications in areas like engineering novel herbicide resistance or pathogen resistance traits. The award period is from December 2024 to November 2026.
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