NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology: The Origin and Evolution of Nectaries in Non-Flowering Plants

Fellow's name: Jacob S. Suissa Proposal number: 2208845 Research title: The origin and evolution of nectaries in non-flowering plants

Sponsoring scientist(s) and host institution(s): Dr. Fay-Wei, Lee Boyce Thompson Institute and Dr. Corrie Moreau, Cornell University

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2022, Integrative Research Investigating the Rules of Life Governing Interactions Between Genomes, Environment and Phenotypes. The fellowship supports research and training of the fellow that will contribute to the area of Rules of Life in innovative ways. Interactions between plants and animals are ecologically important, and plants have traits that evolved to affect these interactions.

Understanding how and why these traits have evolved remain some of the most important biological questions. The fellow aims to take a step closer to answering these questions by exploring the early evolution of plant nectar glands. Nectar glands (nectaries), are common in flowers, but also occur in certain non-flowering plants, like the ancient fern lineage.

In ferns these nectaries attract ants that feed on the nectar and fight off insects that want to eat the plant. Yet, we do not know when these nectaries evolved in ferns or whether the underlying genes responsible for their development are similar to those in flowers. The fellow’s work is important in that it will reveal the early evolution of nectaries, potentially shifting our understanding of the evolution of these structures and early plant-animal interactions.

Broadly, the fellow aims to explore the origins and evolution of nectaries in a three-part multidisciplinary research program. First, integrating data on the timing of nectary evolution in ferns and flowering plants with major radiations of insect lineages, he will determine when, why, and how nectaries first evolved. Then, by using RNA-sequencing across divergent fern species he will uncover the genes underlying nectary development in ferns.

He will then use comparative transcriptomics to determine if genes expressed in fern nectaries are similar to those of nectaries in flowering plants. Finally, using comparative genomics across land plants, he will pinpoint when this genetic toolkit first evolved. The fellow hypothesizes that nectaries evolved first in ferns before flowering plants, and that nectary genes in ferns are likely stomatal or phloem-specific genes which evolved early in the evolution of land plants.

In addition to his research, the fellow is also committed to outreach and science communication. He plans to continue his work of democratizing the study of plant biology through his social media platform Let’s Botanize. He is also dedicated to creating a more equitable and inclusive field of science by mentoring undergraduate students from historically marginalized groups during the Cornell University Summer Research Internship program.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.