Astrid Wingler's group
Astrid Wingler
Contact details
Research Department of Genetics Evolution and
Environment
University College London
Darwin Building
Gower Street
London WC1E 6BT
Phone: +44 (0)20 7679 2681
Email:
a.wingler@ucl.ac.uk
Our
research focuses on the function and regulation of leaf senescence in
annual plants, in particular in the model species Arabidopsis thaliana
and closely related species. We have found that senescence is regulated
by signals from plant metabolism, e.g. high sugar content accelerates
leaf senescence. This may be important for the response of plants to
their environment, e.g. to signal low nitrogen availability, high light
or high CO2. Further interactions exist with growth
temperature and the regulation of flowering. We are currently exploring
the genetic basis of these interactions and how they affect plant
fitness in response to the changing environment.
Group research programme
Genetic basis of senescence regulation in
plants
We have identified sugar accumulation as an
important factor that integrates environmental signals, e.g. low
nitrogen supply or high light, in the regulation of leaf senescence
(e.g. Wingler et al. 2004, Pourtau et al. 2004, Wingler et al. 2006,
Pourtau et al. 2006, Wingler and Roitsch 2008). Interactions were found
between the effect of sugars and the growth temperature in the
regulation of senescence (Masclaux-Daubresse et al. 2007). Plants that
have acclimated to cold temperatures do not show the typical induction
of leaf senescence in response to sugars, allowing them to stay green
despite the accumulation of sugars, which is an important part of the
cold acclimation process. This regulatory interaction may be
particularly important in winter-annual Arabidopsis accessions that
require a prolonged period of cold (vernalisation) to enable flowering
in spring.
The role of trehalose metabolism in leaf development
In collaboration with Dr Matthew Paul’s group
at Rothamsted Research we are analysing the function of trehalose
6-phosphate (T6P), a precursor of the disaccharide trehalose, in plant
metabolism and development. This work was funded by a joint BBSRC grant
(2005-2008). Most important outcome of the grant was the identification
of the mechanism of T6P signalling. We have demonstrated that T6P
inhibits the protein kinase SnRK1, which is a central regulator of
starvation and stress responses in plants, in vitro and in vivo (Zhang
et al. 2009). By inhibiting SnRK1, T6P acts as a signal for high carbon
availability and activates biosynthetic pathways, e.g. amino acid,
protein and nucleotide synthesis.
Group facilities and
specialisations
Chlorophyll fluorescence imaging,
photosynthetic analysis, sugar metabolism, gene expression.
Teaching and
training
Teaching
contributions to the following undergraduate courses:
“Evolution,
Development and Biodiversity” (plant evolution); “Field Course in
Environmental Biology” (plant identification and ecophysiology); “The
Life of Plants” (photosynthesis, plant intelligence and behaviour, GM
crops); “Fundamentals of Molecular Biology” (sequencing, PCR); “Plants,
Environment and Climate Change” (photosynthetic adaptation and
acclimation, response of plants to climate change); “Molecular Biology
in Science and Medicine” (genetic engineering of plants and functional
genomics)
Public lectures, e.g. on “Plants – why we need them”, “Victims
or saviours - can plants protect us against global warming?"