Browsing by Author "Ramirez, Melissa V."
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- Analysis of T-DNA alleles of flavonoid biosynthesis genes in Arabidopsis ecotype ColumbiaBowerman, Peter A.; Ramirez, Melissa V.; Price, Michelle B.; Helm, Richard F.; Winkel, Brenda S. J. (2012-09-04)BACKGROUND: The flavonoid pathway is a long-standing and important tool for plant genetics, biochemistry, and molecular biology. Numerous flavonoid mutants have been identified in Arabidopsis over the past several decades in a variety of ecotypes. Here we present an analysis of Arabidopsis lines of ecotype Columbia carrying T-DNA insertions in genes encoding enzymes of the central flavonoid pathway. We also provide a comprehensive summary of various mutant alleles for these structural genes that have been described in the literature to date in a wide variety of ecotypes. FINDINGS: The confirmed knockout lines present easily-scorable phenotypes due to altered pigmentation of the seed coat (or testa). Knockouts for seven alleles for six flavonoid biosynthetic genes were confirmed by PCR and characterized by UPLC for altered flavonol content. CONCLUSION: Seven mutant lines for six genes of the central flavonoid pathway were characterized in ecotype, Columbia. These lines represent a useful resource for integrating biochemical and physiological studies with genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic data, much of which has been, and continues to be, generated in the Columbia background.
- Probing Plant Metabolism: The Machineries of [Fe-S] Cluster Assembly and Flavonoid BiosynthesisRamirez, Melissa V. (Virginia Tech, 2008-08-06)The organization of metabolism is an essential feature of cellular biochemistry. Metabolism does not occur as a linear assembly of freely diffusing enzymes, but as a complex web in which multiple interactions are possible. Because of the crowded environment of the cell, there must be structured and ordered mechanisms that control metabolic pathways. The following work will examine two metabolic pathways, one that is ubiquitous among living organisms and another that is entirely unique to plants, and examine the organization of each in an attempt to further define mechanisms that are fundamental features of metabolic control. One study offers some of the first characterizations of genes involved in [Fe-S] cluster assembly in Arabidopsis. The other explores the mechanisms that control localization of an enzyme that is part of the well-characterized flavonoid biosynthetic pathway. These two distinct pathways serve as unique models for genetic and biochemical studies that contribute to our overall understanding of plant metabolism.