Date of Award

2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Clore, Amy

Area of Concentration

Biology

Abstract

Due to the growth response of their stem pulvini, Zea mays (L.) stalks undergo upward curvature in response to reorientation relative to the gravity vector. This change in growth, called gravitropism, can occur due to lodging incidence, which is a pressing problem in the agricultural industry. Gravistimulation can affect both cellular and physiological changes, as indicated by fluctuations in reactive oxygen species (ROS), gene expression, protein levels and activities, and phytohormone activities. The small cellular changes are ultimately reflected on a physiological level when the plant reorients itself after a tipping or lodging event. The lower maize pulvinus halves elongate, causing bending at their locations, and the nature of this elongation contrasts with eudicot plants, such as Arabidopsis thaliana, in which gravitropic elongation occurs all along the stem. After a review of cereal grass stem pulvini and what is known about these gravitropic events, this thesis will propose new directions and a way forward for this area of research, suggesting methodologies such as qPCR, RNA-sequencing (a type of next-generation sequencing), and microplate assays to further characterize the relationship between ROS and gene expression during cereal grass gravitropism. It is proposed that these methods would allow a more thorough analysis of the genes and proteins involved in maize gravitropism, including those downstream of ROS signaling during the response.

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