Exploring Genotypic Diversity for Functional Trait Variance
EMSL Project ID
50572
Abstract
By establishing genome-phenome maps for Brachypodium and Setaria, we will seek to unravel how information in the plant genome translates to traits and responses at the plant and experimental ecosystem levels. Subsequent molecular and microbial profiling of select Brachypodium and Setaria genotypes in collaboration with the MolPheno and Plant-Microbe projects will provide mechanistic understanding for observed phenotypic expressions across scales. Data obtained from Brachypodium and Setaria will serve as a knowledge base for improving biomass production in bioenergy ecosystems such as sorghum plantations on marginal land, and for predicting and controlling biomass accumulation and allocation in native grasslands, e.g. in restoration projects. GenoTrait will also document the contribution of genotypic diversity for PFTs, e.g. aboveground biomass accumulation, plant-microbe interactions, and molecular profiles, in responding to environmental stressors such as freshwater limitation for Brachypodium and Setaria, and for keystone species from selected terrestrial-aquatic ecosystem (TAE) sites. Selected plants will be grown in the EMSL Phytotron and in plot scales at the PNNL field sites on the Richland campus and at the Marine Sciences Laboratory (MSL) in Sequim. Leaf tissues for genotyping by sequencing (GBS) will also be sampled from TAE sites. Understanding plant genotypic diversity for PFT variance will help choosing the right genotypes to achieve the optimal range of PFTs to maximize ecosystem resilience to freshwater limitation as preventive measures, or in ecosystem design including bioenergy cropping systems, or restoration.
Project Details
Start Date
2018-10-16
End Date
2019-09-30
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members
Related Publications
Zengler K., K.S. Hofmockel, N.S. Baliga, S.W. Behie, H. Bernstein, J.B. Brown, and J.R. Dinneny, et al. 2019. "EcoFAB: Advancing microbiome science through standardized fabricated ecosystems." Nature Methods 16, no. 7:567-571. PNNL-SA-138240. doi:10.1038/s41592-019-0465-0