The course is separated in four parts and will be taught over a ten week period. It consists of three modular parts that are described below, and the writing of a popular science essay in the final 2½ weeks. The modular parts of the course have subjects in common that will be explained at different levels of organization (cell, tissue, whole plant and population).
1. Abiotic interactions; Shade avoidance
Light is a major limiting resource for autotrophic plant growth. Sensing the light environment and responding in such a way that photon absorption is maximized is thus essential for plants in a competitive environment. When subject to vegetational shading, plants are exposed to a variety of informational signals, which include altered light quality and a reduction in light quantity. The former includes a decrease in the ratio of red to far-red wavelengths (low R : FR) and is detected by the phytochrome family of plant photoreceptors. Monitoring of R:FR ratios can provide an early and unambiguous warning of the presence of competing vegetation, thereby evoking escape responses before plants are actually shaded. In this part of the course we will discuss both the adaptive responses of plants to their light environment as it is modified by neighboring plants, as well as the molecular and hormonal signaling mechanisms underlying these physiological responses. It will further be discussed how these shade avoidance responses affect the plant’s ability to cope with other stresses, such as attack of herbivorous insects and pathogenic micro-organisms.
2.
Biotic interactions; Signaling in plant-microbe interactions
In nature, plants are constantly under attack of pathogenic micro-organisms and herbivorous insects. Evolution has provided plants with sophisticated defensive strategies to “perceive” attack by pathogens and insects, and to translate that “perception” into an appropriate defense response. This plant innate immunity is based on a surprisingly complex response that is highly flexible in its capacity to recognize and respond to the invader encountered. Besides harmful pathogens, plants also interact with beneficial micro-organisms that help the plant to defend themselves. During the course we will provide insight in the biological processes that are involved in the interaction of plants with beneficial and harmful organisms in their environment. The role of signaling between organisms, and transduction of hormonal signals to effective defense responses in the plant will play a central role. In this part, we will focus on the interaction of plants with micro-organisms and insects that naturally occur in their environment.
3. Competition
The third part of the course will address the functional interpretation of morphological and physiological plant characteristics, focusing on changes in allocation patterns (root/shoot, stem/leaves, nitrogen distribution in the canopy) in response to the above- and belowground detection of neighbors, c.q. competitors. The contrast between optimal and evolutionarily stable allocation patterns will be discussed as an example of the far-reaching consequences of evolutionary game theory for the analysis of plant responses to biotic and abiotic changes in their environment in situations, where the pay-off of the response depends on the response of neighbors.
Literature/study material used:
Research/review papers will be provided during the course.
Registration:
Send an e-mail to the course coordinator (Marcel Proveniers;
m.proveniers@uu.nl). The mail should contain 1) your name; 2) student number; 3) e-mail address; 4) telephone number; 5) current Master track.
Mandatory for students in Master’s programme: NO.
Optional for students in other Master’s programmes GS-LS: Environmental Biology, especially the specialization programme Behavioural Ecology; and any other master programme with relevant basal courses.