Project information
Biological role of endopolyploidy in flowering plants (BiolEndop)

Endopolyploidy (EP) is a programmed process where cells multiply their genome without subsequent cell division. For many plant species, EP likely contributes to development of their vegetative parts, yet its exact role in plant growth and adaptation to specific ecological settings remains speculative. This is mainly due to the plastic nature of EP, which challenges its accurate quantification and cross-species comparison, the lack of anatomical observations of EP cell occurrence, and the absence of experimental proof for suggested EP functions. Additionally, EP data from certain plant organs, such as roots, are globally lacking.
In this project, we will screen EP using a standardized methodology in a largest to date species sample from several ecological plant groups (spring ephemerals, alpine herbs, succulents) and provide first robust EP observation for plant roots. In selected species, we will perform detailed anatomical observations of EP cell occurrence and other growth-related anatomical traits to hypothesize the exact function of EP. The validity of these hypotheses will be tested in two manipulative climabox experiments.