The amazing diversity of plants is encoded in the genome, which directs both development and how the plant responds to its environment and the challenges it faces.
We aim to use genomic data to further our understanding of both these processes. Much of our current understanding of plant biology is based on a few model and crop species. By studying the full range of plant diversity we get a much clearer view of what plants can do and how they do it.
To understand variation, we first need to describe it. We use light and electron microscopy to examine exactly how plant form develops and understand at which stages in development species differ.
A first step in linking genotype and phenotype is looking at variation in which genes are expressed, where, and at what level.
We use RNASeq to measure levels of expression of all genes across leaves, flowers or roots and see how this varies within and between species.
To look in more detail at specific genes in specific cells we use in-situ hybridisation, which visualises gene expression in the tissue.
We use many techniques to confirm what genetic changes lead to changes in how plants develop and how they behave.
Statistical approaches use large populations of plants to look for correlations between genetic and phenotypic variation (QTL, GWAS). We can use random mutagenesis to knock out genes and see how that affects the plant.
We are also developing targeted approaches, using transgenic and directed CRISPR-Cas mutagenesis to fully understand the role of genes we think are key regulators of diversity.
Chen YY, K Nishii, C Kidner, CA Hackett, M Möller (2020). QTL dissection of floral traits in Streptocarpus (Gesneriaceae). Euphytica 216: e110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-020-02647-1
Coley PD, M‐J Endara, G Ghabash, CA Kidner, JA Nicholls, RT Pennington, AG Mills et al. (2019). Macroevolutionary patterns in overexpression of tyrosine: An anti‐herbivore defence in a speciose tropical tree genus, Inga (Fabaceae). Journal of Ecology 107, no. 4: 1620-1632. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13208
Emelianova K, A Martínez Martínez, L Campos-Dominguez, C Kidner (2021). Multi-tissue transcriptome analysis of two Begonia species reveals dynamic patterns of evolution in the chalcone synthase gene family. Scientific Reports 11, no. 1: 17773. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-96854-y
Emelianova K, C Kidner (2022). Comparative transcriptome analysis of two closely related Begonia species reveals divergent patterns in key light-regulated pathways. Edinburgh Journal of Botany 79: 1-18. https://doi.org/10.24823/EJB.2022.398
Kidner C, A Groover, DC Thomas, K Emelianova, C Soliz-Gamboa, F Lens (2016). First steps in studying the origins of secondary woodiness in Begonia (Begoniaceae): combining anatomy, phylogenetics, and stem transcriptomics. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 117, no. 1: 121-138. https://doi.org/10.1111/bij.12492
Nishii K, A Spada, M Möller (2020). Hormonal crosstalk in the regulation of meristem activity and the phyllomorph architecture in Streptocarpus (Gesneriaceae): a review. Rheedea - Special Gesneriaceae Issue 30(1): 96–115. https://dx.doi.org/10.22244/rheedea.2020.30.01.04
Nishii K, BH Huang, CN Wang, M Möller (2017). From shoot to leaf: step-wise shifts in meristem and KNOX1 activity correlate with the evolution of a unifoliate body plan in Gesneriaceae. Development Genes and Evolution 227(1): 41–60. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00427-016-0568-x
Nishii K, Y Fei, A Hudson, M Möller, A. Molnar (2020). Virus‑induced gene silencing in Streptocarpus rexii (Gesneriaceae). Molecular Biotechnology 62: 317–325. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12033-020-00248-w
Rudall PJ, ACM Julier, CA Kidner (2018). Ultrastructure and development of non-contiguous stomatal clusters and helicocytic patterning in Begonia. Annals of botany 122, no. 5: 767-776. https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcx146
