Zoe Wilson

Contact

• workRoom C28 Plant Sciences
  Sutton Bonington Campus
  Sutton Bonington
  Leicestershire
  LE12 5RD
  UK
• work0115 951 3235
• fax0115 951 6334
• zoe.wilson@nottingham.ac.uk
• http://genomics.nottingham.ac.uk/~Zoe/pslab/Wilson/

Teaching Summary

Molecular Genetics and Development. Genomic technologies. Plant Science. I think interaction and discussion are critical for effective learning and my modules involve discussion sessions focussed on… read more

Research Summary

My interests include the molecular genetic analysis of plant development, focusing on male reproduction and the events occurring during pollen and anther development. We have used mutants that are… read more

Selected Publications

• XU, J., YANG, C., YUAN, Z., ZHANG, D., GONDWE, M. Y., DING, Z., LIANG, W., ZHANG, D-B. and WILSON, Z.A., 2010. The ABORTED MICROSPORES Regulatory Network Is Required for Postmeiotic Male Reproductive Development in Arabidopsis thaliana. The Plant Cell. 22, 91-107
• YANG, C., XU, Z., SONG, J., CONNER, K., VIZCAY BARRENA, G. and WILSON, Z.A, 2007. <i>Arabidopsis MYB26/MALE STERILE35</i> regulates secondary thickening in the endothecium and is essential for anther dehiscence Plant Cell. 19(2), 534-548
• YANG, CAIYUN, VIZCAY-BARRENA, GEMA, CONNER, KATIE and WILSON, ZOE A, 2007. MALE STERILITY1 is required for tapetal development and pollen wall biosynthesis. Plant Cell. 19(11), 3530-48
• GRINI, P.E., THORSTENSEN, T., ALM, V., VIZCAY-BARRENA, G., WINDJU, S.S., JORSTAD, T.S., WILSON, Z.A. and AALEN, R.B., 2009. The ASH1 HOMOLOG 2 (ASHH2) histone H3 methyltransferase is required for ovule and anther development in Arabidopsis. PLoS ONE. 4, e7817.

• View all publications

Molecular Genetics and Development. Genomic technologies. Plant Science. I think interaction and discussion are critical for effective learning and my modules involve discussion sessions focussed on key papers and presentations by students.

Current Research

My interests include the molecular genetic analysis of plant development, focusing on male reproduction and the events occurring during pollen and anther development. We have used mutants that are defective at various stages of pollen development to study genes critical to these pathways. These stages range from meiotic aberrations, to tapetal abnormalities and the degeneration of immature pollen, through to dehiscence mutants that produce functional pollen that does not get released.

One of the most important anther tissues is the tapetum, which is essential for synchronizing development of the maternal anther tissues and the developing gametophytes. We are interested in the regulatory activities of the tapetum and the roles it plays in pollen development, and have been investigating the regulatory networks of two tapetal transcription factors, ABORTED MICROSPORE (AMS) and MALESTERILITY1 (MS1). We have identified a number of AMS regulatory targets and interacting factors, which are preferentially expressed in male reproductive tissues and have functionally linked these to pollen formation. We have also characterised MS1 and shown that it has homology to the PHD-finger class of transcription regulators, is expressed in the anther tapetum but has highly regulated expression. MS1 alters transcription in the anther and they have identified a large number of MS1-target genes, many of which are involved in pollen wall synthesis. MS1 is also involved in the control of tapetal secretion and programmed cell death (PCD). We are extending this work into the study of orthologues of these gene and interacting factors in crop species.

Another major focus is anther dehiscence and we are using an indehiscent mutant, ms35, to elucidate anther endothecial development and secondary wall thickening. We have shown that this is due to a mutation in the MYB26 gene, which is critical for specifying secondary thickening in the anther. We have over-expressed AtMYB26 and observed ectopic secondary thickening, and shown that MYB26 regulates a number of

Future Research

Analysing pollen development pathways in crops.

Adopting systems biology approaches to the study of pollen development.

• WANG, C, MARSHALL, A., ZHANG, D and WILSON, ZA, 2012. ANAP: an integrated knowledge base for Arabidopsis protein interaction network analysis Plant Physiology. 158, 1-11 (In Press.)
• PLACKETT, A.R.G, POWERS, S., FERNANDEZ-GARCIA, N., URBANOVA. T., TAKEBAYASHI, T., SEO, M., JIKUMARU, Y., BENLLOCH. R., NILSSON, O., RUIZ-RIVERO, O., PHILLIPS, A.L., WILSON, ZA, THOMAS, S.G. and HEDDEN, P., 2012. Analysis of the developmental roles of the Arabidopsis gibberellin 20-oxidases demonstrates that AtGA20ox1, -2 and -3 are the dominant prologues Plant Cell. (In Press.)
• FERNÁNDEZ GÓMEZ, J. and WILSON, ZA, 2012. Non-destructive staging of Barley Reproductive Development for Molecular Analysis based upon External Morphology Journal Experimental Botany. (In Press.)
• PLACKETT ARG, POWERS SJ, FERNANDEZ-GARCIA N, URBANOVA T, TAKEBAYASHI Y, SEO M, JIKUMARU Y, BENLLOCH R, NILSSON O, RUIZ-RIVERO O, PHILLIPS AL, WILSON ZA, THOMAS SG and HEDDEN P, 2012. Analysis Of The Developmental Roles Of The Arabidopsis Gibberellin 20-Oxidases Demonstrates That Ga20ox1, -2, And -3 Are The Dominant Paralogs. The Plant Cell. (In Press.)
• WANG C, MARSHALL A, ZHANG D and WILSON ZA, 2012. Anap: An Integrated Knowledge Base For Arabidopsis Protein Interaction Network Analysis. Plant Physiology. (In Press.)
• NÚÑEZ DE CÁCERES, FF,, DAVEY, MR and WILSON, ZA, 2011. A rapid and efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transformation protocol for Lilium Acta Hort. 900, 161-167
• WILSON, ZA, SONG, J, TAYLOR, B and YANG, CY, 2011. The Final Split: The Regulation Of Anther Dehiscence
• LI, H, YUAN, Z, VIZCAY-BARRENA, G, YANG, CY, LIANG, WQ, ZONG, J, WILSON, ZA and ZHANG, DB, 2011. Persistent Tapetal Cell1 Encodes A Phd-Finger Protein That Is Required For Tapetal Cell Death And Pollen Development In Rice Plant Physiology. 156(2), 615-630
• VIZCAY-BARRENA, G, WEBB, SED, MARTIN-FERNANDEZ, ML and WILSON, ZA, 2011. Subcellular And Single-Molecule Imaging Of Plant Fluorescent Proteins Using Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy (Tirfm) Journal Of Experimental Botany. 62(15), 5419-5428
• PLACKETT, ARG, THOMAS, SG, WILSON, ZA and HEDDEN, P, 2011. Gibberellin Control Of Stamen Development: A Fertile Field
• XU, J., YANG, C., YUAN, Z., ZHANG, D., GONDWE, M. Y., DING, Z., LIANG, W., ZHANG, D-B. and WILSON, Z.A., 2010. The ABORTED MICROSPORES Regulatory Network Is Required for Postmeiotic Male Reproductive Development in Arabidopsis thaliana. The Plant Cell. 22, 91-107
• YUAN, ZHENG, GAO, SHAN, XUE, DA-WEI, LUO, DA, LI, LAN-TIAN, DING, SHU-YAN, YAO, XUAN, WILSON, ZOE A, QIAN, QIAN and ZHANG, DA-BING, 2009. RETARDED PALEA1 controls palea development and floral zygomorphy in rice. Plant Physiology. 149(1), 235-44
• GRINI, P.E., THORSTENSEN, T., ALM, V., VIZCAY-BARRENA, G., WINDJU, S.S., JORSTAD, T.S., WILSON, Z.A. and AALEN, R.B., 2009. The ASH1 HOMOLOG 2 (ASHH2) histone H3 methyltransferase is required for ovule and anther development in Arabidopsis. PLoS ONE. 4, e7817.
• WANG, C., XU, J., ZHANG, D., WILSON, Z.A. and ZHANG, D-B., 2009. An effective approach for identification of in vivo protein-DNA binding sites from paired-end ChIP-Seq data. BMC Bioinformatics. 11, 81
• WILSON, Z.A. and ZHANG, D.B., 2009. From Arabidopsis to rice: pathways in pollen development. Journal Experimental Botany. 60, 1479-1492.
• ZHANG D-B,: WILSON Z.A., 2009. Stamen specification and anther development in rice. Chinese Sci Bulletin. 54, 2342―2353
• ZHANG, DB and WILSON, ZA, 2009. Stamen Specification And Anther Development In Rice
• YANG, L., LIANG, W., JIANG, L., LI, W., CAO, W., WILSON, Z. A. and ZHANG, D., 2008. A novel universal real-time PCR system using the attached universal duplex probes for quantitative analysis of nucleic acids BMC Molecular Biology. VOL 9, 54
• YANG, CAIYUN, VIZCAY-BARRENA, GEMA, CONNER, KATIE and WILSON, ZOE A, 2007. MALE STERILITY1 is required for tapetal development and pollen wall biosynthesis. Plant Cell. 19(11), 3530-48
• YANG, C., XU, Z., SONG, J., CONNER, K., VIZCAY BARRENA, G. and WILSON, Z.A, 2007. <i>Arabidopsis MYB26/MALE STERILE35</i> regulates secondary thickening in the endothecium and is essential for anther dehiscence Plant Cell. 19(2), 534-548
• VIZCAY-BARRENA, G. and WILSON, Z.A., 2006. Altered tapetal PCD and pollen wall development in the <i>Arabidopsis ms1</i> mutant. Journal of Experimental Botany. 57(11), 2709-2717
• YANG, C., MULLIGAN, B. J. and WILSON, Z. A., 2004. Molecular genetic analysis of pollen irradiation mutagenesis in Arabidopsis New Phytologist. VOL 164(NUMBER 2), 279-288
• WILSON, Z. A. and YANG, C., 2004. Plant gametogenesis: conservation and contrasts in development REPRODUCTION -CAMBRIDGE-. VOL 128(NUMB 5), 483-492
• STEINER-LANGE, S., UNTE, U.S., ECKSTEIN, L., YANG, C., WILSON, Z.A., SCHMELZER, E., DEKKER, K. and SAEDLER, H., 2003. Disruption of <i>Arabidopsis thaliana MYB26</i> results in male sterility due to non-dehiscent anthers Plant Journal. VOL 34(PART 4), 519-528
• KALANTIDIS, K., WILSON, Z. A. and MULLIGAN, B. J., 2002. Mitochondrial gene expression in stamens is differentially regulated during male gametogenesis in Arabidopsis SEXUAL PLANT REPRODUCTION. VOL 14(PART 5), 299-304
• BROWN, A. C., MOSS, S. R., WILSON, Z. A. and FIELD, L. M., 2002. An isoleucine to leucine substitution in the ACCase of Alopecurus myosuroides (black-grass) is associated with resistance to the herbicide sethoxydim Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology. VOL 72(PART 3), 160-168
• COOPER, F.M., JONES, M., WILSON, Z. and WATKINS, C., 2002. Geographic distribution and genetic diversity of native black poplar (W1-022/TR)
• WILSON, Z.A., MORROLL, S.M., DAWSON, J., SWARUP, R. and TIGHE, P.J., 2001. The <i>Arabidopsis MALE STERILITY1 (MS1)</i> gene is a transcriptional regulator of male gametogenesis, with homology to the PHD-finger family of transcription factors Plant Journal. 28(1), 27-39
• WILSON, ZOE A., 2000. Arabidopsis : a practical approach: edited by Zoe A. Wilson Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2000.
• DAWSON, J., SOEZEN, E., VIZIR, I., VAN WAEYENBERGE, S., WILSON, Z. A. and MULLIGAN, B. J., 1999. Characterization and genetic mapping of a mutation (ms35) which prevents anther dehiscence in Arabidopsis thaliana by affecting secondary wall thickening in the endothecium New Phytologist. VOL 144(NUMBER 2), 213-222
• MORROLL, S. M. and WILSON, Z. A., 1998. Arabidopsis YAC restriction mapping Genome. VOL 41(NUMBER 6), 806-817
• WILSON, Z.A., 1997. Molecular genetic analysis: Chromosome walking; gene tagging; RFLP analysis. In: Methods in Plant Biochemistry 10b. Academic Press, Incorporated, Orlando, Florida, USA. 30-64
• THORLBY, G.J., SHLUMUKOV, L., VIZIR, I.Y., YANG, C.Y., MULLIGAN, B.J. and WILSON, Z.A., 1997. Molecular physical mapping of the <I>lu-ttg</I> region of <I>Arabidopsis</I> chromosome 5 Weeds World. 4, Oct-21
• THORLBY, G. J., SHLUMUKOV, L., VIZIR, I. Y., YANG, C.-Y., MULLIGAN, B. J. and WILSON, Z. A., 1997. Fine-scale molecular genetic (RFLP) and physical mapping of a 8.9 cM region on the top arm of Arabidopsis chromosome 5 encompassing the male sterility gene, ms1 Plant Journal. VOL 12(NUMBER 2), 471-479
• THORLBY, G.J., VIZIR, I., MULLIGAN, B.J. and WILSON, Z.A., 1997. Detection of a region of <I>Arabidopsis</I> chromosome 5 between the genetic markers <I>ms1</I> and <I>ttg</I>, which undergoes a high frequency of recombination or rearrangement Journal of Experimental Botany. 48, May-37
• THORLBY, G.J., VIZIR, I., MULLIGAN, B.J. and WILSON, Z.A., 1997. RFLP; physical mapping of an 8.9cM region of <I>Arabidopsis</I> chromosome 5; which includes <I>Ms1</I>; an essential gene for pollen development Journal of Experimental Botany. 48, May-51
• AARTS, M. G. M., HODGE, R., KALANTIDIS, K., FLORACK, D., WILSON, Z. A., MULLIGAN, B. J., STIEKEMA, W. J., SCOTT, R. and PEREIRA, A., 1997. The Arabidopsis MALE STERILITY 2 protein shares similarity with reductases in elongation/condensation complexes Plant Journal. VOL 12(NUMBER 3), 615-623
• TIGHE, P. J., GOYAL, P. K., WILSON, Z. A. and WAKELIN, D., 1994. Analysis of genetic variation in isolates of Trichinella using random amplified polymorphic DNA MOLECULAR AND BIOCHEMICAL PARASITOLOGY. VOL 63(NUMBER 1), 175
• THAM, F. Y., LUCAS, J. A. and WILSON, Z. A., 1994. DNA fingerprinting of Peronospora parasitica, a biotrophic fungal pathogen of crucifers THEORETICAL AND APPLIED GENETICS. VOL 88(NUMBER 3-4), 490
• VIZIR, I. Y., ANDERSON, M. L., WILSON, Z. A. and MULLIGAN, B. J., 1994. Isolation of deficiencies in the Arabidopsis genome by gamma-irradiation of pollen GENETICS -USA-. VOL 137(NUMBER 4), 1111
• DAWSON, J., WILSON, Z. A., AARTS, M. G. M. and BRAITHWAITE, A. F., 1993. Microspore and pollen development in six male-sterile mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana CANADIAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY. VOL 71(NUMBER 4), 629