Event



Mom knows best? Plant responses to environmental changes across generations

Department of Biology Seminar Series
Dr Gabriela Auge. Fundación Instituto Leloir, IIBBA-CONICET; Departamento de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires. Argentina
- | Tedori Family Auditorium, Levin Building
Gabriela Auge

Plants continuously process information they receive from their environment and use this information to adjust their life cycle and physiology to seasonal and environmental changes. Interestingly, they can respond to changes that occur during their life cycle, as well as to those experienced by previous generations. This environmental memory may influence physiological processes and expression of adaptive life histories across generations. Knowing how environments experienced by mother plants affect progeny responses may help us better understand evolutionary outcomes in natural communities and design improved management programs for agricultural systems. In this seminar I will present recent work aiming to shed light on the genetic basis of transgenerational effects in plants. I will also briefly summarize my plans to explore the molecular elements involved and to infer how such effects would influence plant responses in changing environments in natural and agricultural settings.