This $534,635 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) will fund research at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) to investigate the genomic, cellular, and physiological effects of whole genome duplications on organismal energy production in plants. The research aims to understand the genetic underpinnings of how plant cells produce energy, particularly in the context of crop improvement efforts. Key activities include quantifying and measuring organelles, evaluating photosynthetic performance, and comparing nuclear versus cytoplasmic transcript pools in diploid, polyploid, and aneuploid plant contexts. The project will also perform association tests in Arabidopsis thaliana to disentangle the complex genomic architecture underlying cytonuclear stoichiometry, which is critical for establishing a cell's chloroplast and mitochondrial content. The findings are expected to inform future efforts to improve metabolic function in polyploid crops. This award runs from January 1, 2025 to January 31, 2027 and does not include any planned sub-awards.
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