Plant Genomics, Gene Regulation, and Cell Death

The laboratory of Dr. Eric Lam focuses on understanding basic plant functions such as nuclear chromatin organization, programmed cell death, and disease resistance.

Chromatin Charting

This project concentrates on the organization and dynamics of plant nuclear DNA in situ. Chromosomes in interphase nuclei are highly organized and it appears that the three-dimensional positions of genes in the interphase nuclei may influence their expression. Our goals are to obtain a global view of position effects in the Arabidopsis chromosomes and to identify the three-dimensional positions of genes of interest in interphase nuclei. By generating and crossing specially tagged lines with distinct fluorescent markers and a common luciferase gene as functional marker, we can evaluate position effects and compare the organization and dynamic properties of chromatin in the interphase nuclei. We have now generated over 270 insertion lines that we have been able to map onto locations dispersed in the Arabidopsis genome and have produced the first transcription potential map with 14-day-old seedlings. The collection of tagged lines that we have identified to exhibit position effects should be useful tools to examine the global impact of chromatin structure on gene activity and organization (i.e. epigenetic regulation). We are currently using selected lines from our collection to characterize the global epigenetic network in the genome as well as to apply them in chemical biology screens for epigenetic therapeutics and agrichemicals. This research is carried out in collaboration with investigators at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY, and funded by the Plant Genome Research Program at NSF.

Programmed Cell Death

In this area of research, our aim is to elucidate the regulatory mechanisms of programmed cell death (PCD) control in plants at the molecular level, using Arabidopsis thaliana and Nicotiana tabacum as model organisms. We have established biochemically the functional properties of a set of Arabidopsis cysteine proteases called metacaspases that are likely to mediate cell death activation by reactive oxygen species. Current research uses inter-disciplinary approaches to identify and characterize genes that may be part of the cell death engine in plants. From genetic and molecular studies with a highly conserved protein called Bax Inhibitor 1, the endoplasmic reticulum stress signaling pathway is now hypothesized as one of the common signal convergence points that cell death can be activated by multiple stress signal pathways. This knowledge is now being applied for crop protection against biotic and abiotic stresses.

Other Highlights

Dr. Lam is Associate Editor for the journal Plant Molecular Biology and the online journal BMC Plant Biology. He was appointed director of the Biotech Center August 2008.

More Info

• Eric Lam's Lab Website