Biology subjects

Evans, B. S.

Publications and source records attributed to Evans, B. S..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2020

Quantitative Proteomics and Phosphoproteomics Supports a Role for Mut9-Like Kinases in Multiple Metabolic and Signaling Pathways in Arabidopsis

Summary/AbstractProtein phosphorylation is one of the most prevalent post-translational modifications found in eukaryotic systems. It serves as a key molecular mechanism that regulates protein function in response to environmental stimuli. The Mut9-Like Kinases (MLKs) are a plant-specific family of Ser/Thr kinases linked to light, circadian, and abiotic stress signaling. Here we use quantitative phosphoproteomics in conjunction with global proteomic analysis to explore the role of the MLKs in daily protein dynamics. Proteins involved in light, circadian, and hormone signaling, as well as several chromatin-modifying enzymes and DNA damage response factors, were found to have altered phosphorylation profiles in the absence of MLK family kinases. In addition to altered phosphorylation levels, mlk mutant seedlings have an increase in glucosinolate metabolism enzymes. Subsequently, we show that a functional consequence of the changes to the proteome and phosphoproteome in mlk mutant plants is elevated glucosinolate accumulation, and increased sensitivity to DNA damaging agents. Combined with previous reports, this work supports the involvement of MLKs in a diverse set of stress responses and developmental processes, suggesting that the MLKs serve as key regulators linking environmental inputs to developmental outputs.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2018

Testosterone drives status-specific patterns of cooperation and transmission of behavior in a social network

Stable cooperation requires plasticity whereby individuals are able to express competitive or cooperative behaviors depending on social context. To date, however, the physiological mechanisms that underlie behavioral variation in cooperative systems are poorly understood. We studied hormone-mediated behavior in the wire-tailed manakin (Pipra filicauda), a gregarious songbird whose cooperative partnerships are crucial for fitness. We used automated telemetry to monitor > 36,000 cooperative interactions among male manakins over three field seasons, and we examined how circulating testosterone affects cooperation using > 500 hormone samples. Observational data show that in non-territorial floater males, high testosterone is associated with increased cooperative behaviors and subsequent ascension to territorial status. In territory-holding males, however, both observational and experimental evidence demonstrate that high testosterone antagonizes cooperation. Moreover, circulating testosterone explains significant variation (2-8%) in social behavior within each status class. Collectively, our findings show that the hormonal control of cooperation depends on a males social status. We propose that the status-dependent reorganization of hormone-regulatory pathways can facilitate stable cooperative partnerships, and thus provide direct fitness benefits for males.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2017

Cross-Species Complementation Reveals Conserved Functions For EARLY FLOWERING 3 Between Monocots And Dicots

Plant responses to the environment are shaped by external stimuli and internal signaling pathways. In both the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and crop species, circadian clock factors have been identified as critical for growth, flowering and circadian rhythms. Outside of A. thaliana, however, little is known about the molecular function of clock genes. Therefore, we sought to compare the function of Brachypodium distachyon and Seteria viridis orthologs of EARLY FLOWERING3, a key clock gene in A. thaliana. To identify both cycling genes and putative ELF3 functional orthologs in S. viridis, a circadian RNA-seq dataset and online query tool (Diel Explorer) was generated as a community resource to explore expression profiles of Setaria genes under constant conditions after photo- or thermo-entrainment. The function of ELF3 orthologs from A. thaliana, B. distachyon, and S. viridis were tested for complementation of an elf3 mutation in A. thaliana. Despite comparably low sequence identity versus AtELF3 (less than 37%), both monocot orthologs were capable of rescuing hypocotyl elongation, flowering time and arrhythmic clock phenotypes. Molecular analysis using affinity purification and mass spectrometry to compare physical interactions also found that BdELF3 and SvELF3 could be integrated into similar complexes and networks as AtELF3, including forming a composite evening complex. Thus, we find that, despite 180 million years of separation, BdELF3 and SvELF3 can functionally complement loss of ELF3 at the molecular and physiological level.\n\nOne Sentence SummaryOrthologs of a key circadian clock component ELF3 from grasses functionally complement the Arabidopsis counterpart at the molecular and physiological level, in spite of high sequence divergence.

plant biology↗