PI: Thomas Moritz
Staff: Mélanie Mauriat, postdoc; Lorenz Gerber, PhD student; Annika Johansson, PhD student; Ingabritt Carlsson, technician

Background

Mass spectrometry has become one of the leading analytical spectroscopy tools for chemical profiling of biological tissues. Different mass spectrometry techniques can be used depending on what kind of questions that have been raised. For example has the last years GC/MS and LC/MS started to be used extensively in metabolite profiling studies where the aim is to identify differences in metabolite profiles between different biological samples. Other techniques can be used for extensive identification of proteins (MALDI-TOF-MS, ESI-QTOF-MS) and pyrolysis-MS can be used for identification of cell wall components. All these techniques are today important tools in the study of biological relevant questions and is not only a complement to other methods used in functional genomics but also necessary for understanding of biology.

Aims

The aim with this project is by using mass spectrometry methodologies such as GC/MS, UPLC/ESI-MS, pyrolysis-MS and pyrolysis-GC/MS to study transgenic trees with altered wood characteristics. The goal is to use these profiling techniques to both predict and understand on a biochemical level the differences in wood formation between different genotypes with altered wood characteristics. One type of genotypes that will be investigated is transgenic trees with altered gibberellin levels or signalling. We have shown earlier that transgenic aspen with increased levels of gibberellins has e.g. longer xylem fibres. We are now constructing other transgenic trees with other types of changes in GA-metabolism and signalling. These will then be extensively studied on an anatomical level and by the mass spectrometry technologies described above.