Nuclear Processes in Plant Defense

To optimize energy homeostasis and ensure survival, plants rapidly respond and adapt to stressful conditions. Plants constantly monitor their environment using a variety of receptor proteins and relay this information to the cell nucleus. Signal transduction largely relies on stimulus-induced chemical modifications on proteins (post-translational protein modifications) and changes in protein-protein interactions. In the nucleus, the information from various signalling pathways is integrated and translated into appropriate changes in gene expression. This continuous surveillance mechanism allows plants to constantly adapt optimally to their environment.

The aim of our research is to decipher molecular mechanisms of protein-based signalling in the cell nucleus. In addition to functional and cell biological analyses, we try to understand the function of key proteins as comprehensively as possible by integrating data from protein mass spectrometry methods and structural biology analyses. These experiments provide insights into molecular interactions that form the basis of the interconnection of various stress signalling pathways in plants. In addition, we study how plant pathogens manipulate this signalling network to infect plants. A more precise understanding of plant responses to environmental stress forms the basis for breeding new resilient varieties that are able to resist the challenges of climate change.

To share research data as early and comprehensively as possible with other researchers, we use freely accessible preprint servers and raw data storage platforms. We share plasmids and protocols, such as our manual for the cost-effective production of magnetic ‘GFP beads’, on platforms like Addgene or Figshare. We publish the results of our research as freely accessible open-access publications.