Plants at high altitudes grow differently, and a newly discovered oxygen-sensing mechanism may explain why. This matters because until recently, scientists had no molecular explanation for how plants adapt to altitude. The team identified a pathway that directly senses the drop in atmospheric oxygen as elevation increases, but key gaps remain—whether this mechanism operates throughout a plant’s entire life, which genes control it, and whether it can be harnessed for agriculture. If successful, this research could reveal the genetic and physiological basis of altitude adaptation across the full plant life cycle. That knowledge could help breeders develop crops that tolerate the abiotic stresses—lower oxygen, stronger UV, colder temperatures—that crops will encounter as global warming pushes agriculture to higher elevations. It may also inform strategies for protecting alpine species displaced by climate change. This is primarily fundamental science, solving a long-standing puzzle in plant biology. The oxygen-sensing pathway the team studies also exists in animals, so insights here could ripple beyond plants. Past discoveries in fundamental plant biology have led to unexpected applications, from disease-resistant crops to improved food storage.
View original technical description
This proposal seeks to revolutionise understanding of plant adaptation to altitude, by defining the molecular, genetic and physiological mechanisms that link the action of the only known plant oxygen-sensing pathway to genetic adaptation to altitude. With work described in this proposal we will describe new components and mechanisms of altitude adaptation through oxygen-sensing. The work packages of the proposal will address key knowledge gaps that will completely redefine understanding of plant genetic adaptation to altitude. Understanding how plants are adapted to altitude is a key component of plant ecology and high-altitude agriculture and until recently there was no known mechanism for altitude adaptation in plants. We identified one mechanism that directly senses atmospheric oxygen (that decreases with altitude) in etiolated seedlings (Abbas et al Nature 2022 10.1038/s41586-022-04740-y). However, key knowledge gaps were revealed through this discovery. These include the importance of this mechanism throughout the plant life-cycle, genetic loci that control the mechanism, and the potential importance of the mechanism in agriculture and biotechnology. This project will directly address these knowledge gaps. The hypothesis of the proposal is that oxygen-sensing is a core mechanism of plant adaptation to altitude. Three work packages will address three key questions underling this hypothesis, to discover the importance of altitude adaptation through oxygen-sensing; What molecular and physiological processes do oxygen-regulated altitude adaptation target throughout plant development? What genetic loci might oxygen-regulated altitude adaptation target? How might oxygen-regulated altitude adaptation be a useful biotechnological tool for abiotic stress tolerance in crops? The proposed work is particularly timely, building on our preliminary data and our recent publication providing the first molecular mechanism for altitude adaptation (Abbas et al Nature 2022 10.1038/s41586-022-04740-y). The partners who will carry out work detailed in the proposal represent the best mix of expertise and background in the world to carry out the proposed work, including plant physiology, biochemistry, genetics, genomics, biotechnology and metabolomics. It offers the promise of providing for the first time a solved molecular and physiological understanding of altitude adaptation throughout the plant life cycle, solving an outstanding important problem in plant biology. The relevance of this mechanism is becoming increasingly important and urgent as global warming leads to displacement of crop plants and alpine species to higher altitudes. Results obtained will be of broad biological interest as the oxygen-sensing PCO/ADO N-degron pathway also exists in eukaryotic non-plant systems, including animals. The project involves inter-disciplinary experimental approaches spanning biochemistry, genetics and plant physiology, including exciting experimental approaches at a high-altitude laboratory, and will provide exceptional training opportunities for the associated staff, possible only through the proposed multidisciplinary collaborations and sub-contracts.
Plain English summaries and category classifications on this site are generated by AI and may not perfectly reflect the original research.
Is something wrong? Let us know