Speaker – Terri Long, North Carolina State University associate professor in plant and microbial biology

Title – "Old favorites and new players: Iron regulatory mechanisms at the intersection of plant development and stress response"

Abstract – Iron (Fe) is an essential micronutrient that plays critical roles in central metabolic plant processes such as photosynthesis and respiration. The mechanisms by which plants maintain Fe homeostasis are particularly intriguing. While it is relatively abundant, in most soils Fe is insoluble and therefore of limited bioavailability, however excess Fe accumulation in plants can lead to cellular damage. Thus, plants must extract sufficient Fe from recalcitrant growth environments, while also ensuring that Fe content does not exceed a specific range. Arabidopsis and other dicots have developed mechanisms to sense Fe deficiency in the shoot, which triggers roots to solubilize, reduce and uptake Fe across multiple root cell types before transport to the shoot. We have uncovered several molecular mechanisms that control how plants recognize and respond to iron deficiency stress and found new evidence for how specific cell types within the root are involved in these processes. Considering how critical Fe is for overall plant health, it is no surprise that these mechanisms also impact responses to a range of other abiotic and biotic stress conditions.

Host – Dior Kelley, genetics, development and cell biology assistant professor

Long lab website – https://longlab.wordpress.ncsu.edu/

May 3, 2022, GDCB Seminar flyer: Terri Long