Carmen Bergareche Mantúliz

Biography

Carmen Bergareche Mantúliz is Professor from Department of Plant Physiology at University of Barcelona. Her topic of interest is Photocontrol of plant development. Light signal transduction. Phytochromes and nitrogen metabolism.Effect of nitric oxide on seedling de-etiolation and leaflet movements of legumes.

Research Interest

Integration of light signalling and circadianrhythms: seedling de-etiolation and leaflet movements in legumes. Light is vital for photosynthesis, but it is also necessary to direct plant growth and development. Higher plants have evolved a sophisticated photosensory system that detects the quality, quantity, direction and duration of light and use this information to control their developmental pattern. This array of photoreceptors includes phytochromeswhich absorb maximally red/far-red light, the cryptochromes, phototropins, and the zeitlupe family which sense blue/UV-A light, and UVR8 which absorbs UV-B light. Many light dependent physiological processes are regulated by circadian clocks. Circadian-regulated responses ensure the organism’s optimal adaptation to the environment. To fulfil their role circadian clocks must be synchronized to their local environment. The most important entraining signal is light, and both phytochromes and cryptochromes are involved in setting the clock. In our research, we have been focusing our attention on the identification of intermediates - calcium, nitric oxide and protein kinases - in phytochrome and cryptochrome signalling and its interaction with circadian rhythms. We investigate these events at molecular, biochemical and physiological levels using seedling de-etiolation and both nyctinastic and rhythmic leaflet movements which have long been used as a model for studying circadian rhythms.