Investigation of mechanisms regulating cell wall degradation in sugar cane roots during the aerenchyma formation

• Grant number: 11/07586-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: July 01, 2011
• End date: May 12, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Botany - Pant Physiology
• Principal Investigator: Marcos Silveira Buckeridge
• Grantee: Eveline Queiroz de Pinho Tavares
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 13/16225-1 - DNA-protein interactions regulating the degradation of cell wall during Aerenchyma development in roots of sugarcane, BE.EP.DR

Abstract

In a context of greater environmental awareness by our society, the request for a clean and renewable energy is essential. However, to supply the global energy consumption, the amount of biomass available is not sufficient to meet the demand for full replacement of oil, making it necessary the development of technologies for maximum utilization of biomass produced. In Brazil, sugar cane is used to generate ethanol. To improve the utilization of biomass, the process of producing ethanol from sugar cane's lignocellulose requires a step called pre-treatment, which makes the biomass more accessible to the action of glycoside hydrolases that attack the cell wall. However, these enzymes have shown low efficiency, since the cell wall has demonstrated high recalcitrance to hydrolysis. The pre-treatment processes currently used involve physical and chemical methods. However, both of them cause loss of cell wall components, reducing the efficiency of the procedure. Searching for a optimized methodology for pre-treatment, there are several situations in which plants are able to degrade their own cell walls and these processes are related to fruit ripening, seed reserve mobilization and formation of aerenchyma. In the case of rice and corn, the aerenchyma is produced in roots, and in these systems the degradation of the cell wall was verified. In sugar cane, our group detected several genes related to cell wall metabolism and the structure of the polysaccharide components was determined. More recently, we initiated the characterization of the lisigenous aerenchyma formation in roots of cane sugar. In this context, this proposal aims to continue this characterization, understanding the mechanisms involving the network of metabolic and gene signaling throughout the cell wall degradation during aerenchyma formation in sugar cane roots. This system is an interesting model since its induction leads to cell wall degradation of some portion of the cortical parenchyma of roots. The prospect of the proposal is the production of data to design strategies for the development of pre-biological treatment so as to assist the production of second generation ethanol from sugar cane. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

TAVARES, E. Q. P.; GRANDIS, A.; LEMBKE, C. G.; SOUZA, G. M.; PURGATTO, E.; DE SOUZA, A. P.; BUCKERIDGE, M. S.. Roles of auxin and ethylene in aerenchyma formation in sugarcane roots. PLANT SIGNALING & BEHAVIOR, v. 13, n. 3, 2018. (09/52840-7, 13/16225-1, 11/07586-5, 10/17104-5, 08/57908-6)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

TAVARES, Eveline Queiroz de Pinho. Regulation of cell wall degradation during aerenchyma development in roots of sugarcane. 2015. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências (IBIOC/SB) São Paulo.