Deciphering the molecular switch of seed desiccation tolerance to improve plant stress tolerance – DEswitch

Drought has challenged food security worldwide, urging the development of drought-tolerant crop varieties. Crops do not withstand severe drought at the vegetative stage, but produce desiccation tolerance (DT) seeds. The ability to tolerate extreme dehydration is tightly regulated, being switched on during seed maturation and off shortly after germination (DT switch). While major efforts have focused on unravelling the nature of the protective compounds conferring DT, mechanisms that regulate their accumulation during seed development are poorly understood.
The DEswitch project aims at unraveling the molecular regulation of the DT switch. Based on preliminary evidence that specific histone modifications tightly repress the regulatory networks responsible for DT in Arabidopsis thaliana and Medicago truncatula vegetative tissues. We propose combining cutting-edge molecular methods to decipher the exact timing and nature of the DT switch, enabling identification of putative regulators of the DT switch, including pioneer genes, able to switch on/off DT in plants
By unravelling the DT switch, our project will target several pivotal agricultural issues, such as food security and crop adaptation to climate change, with potential improvement of plant stress tolerance, and conservation of genetic resources, with easier management of short-lived seeds.