Current
position
Research Fellow
Research interests
Genes that mediate root formation in the model legume Medicago truncatula
Establishment of the root meristem is dependent on the specification of a stem cell niche and the subsequent development of the quiescent centre. The plant hormone auxin plays a key role stem cell niche formation by affecting gene activities. We have used an in-vitro system combining proteomics, transcriptomics and quantitative real time PCR to identify key genes (transcription factors, microRNAs and signalling molecules) that are involved in the induction of root formation in Medicago truncatula . Now we are elucidating the roles of these genes in root formation and under stress conditions using functional genetics and other molecular and cellular techniques.
Molecular mechanisms of somatic embryogenesis
Plant cells, when grown in-vitro, can undergo sequential de-differentiation and proliferation and redifferentiation to regenerate an entire plant. This capacity of cells is called totipotency. By learning which gene regulatory networks are involved in the shift of a cell to de-differentiate and become committed, we can influence and control particular pathways of cellular differentiation and plant architecture. We are using a combination of proteomics, transcriptomics, molecular biology and functional genetics to dissect the underlaying molecular mechanisms of plant stem cell formation in embryogenesis using an in-vitro system in the model legume Medicago truncatula.
Environmental regulation of male gametophyte development
The reproductive stage of crop development is an essential part of grain production and cold damage during pollen development can cause pollen sterility and up to a 40% reduction in yields in rice and other crops. We have identified key proteins that are proposed to be involved in the regulation of the plant response to cold stress during male gametophyte development in rice. Currently, we are investigating the roles of these proteins in the environmental regulation of male gametophyte development and in stress-induced male sterility.
Selected Publications
Holmes P, Goffard N, Weiller GF, Rolfe BG and Imin N Transcriptional profiling of Medicago truncatula meristematic root cells. Submitted to BMC Plant Biology.
De Jong F, Mathesius U, Imin N and Rolfe BG (2007) A proteome study of the proliferation of cultured Medicago truncatula protoplasts. Proteomics. 7, 722-736.
Imin N and Rolfe BG (2007) Factors that mediate root initiation in plants. Addendum. Plant Signaling & Behavior. 2, 4.
Imin N Anther Proteomes. 2007. Book Chapter in: "Plant Proteomics: Technologies, Strategies, and Applications", Rakwal R. (ed) John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York. In press.
Imin N , Nizamidin M, Wu T and Rolfe BG (2007) Factors involved in root formation in Medicago truncatula. Journal of Experimental Botany. 58 (3): 439-452.
Prayitno J, Imin N , Rolfe, BG and Mathesius U (2006) Identification of ethylene-mediated protein changes during nodulation in Medicago truncatula using proteome analysis. Journal of Proteome Research. 5, 3084-3095.
Imin N , Kerim T, Weinman JJ and Rolfe BG (2006). Low temperature treatment at the young microspore stage induces protein changes in rice anthers. Molecular & Cellular Proteomics 5: 274-292.
Imin N , Nizamidin M, Daniher D, Nolan KE, Ray RJ and Rolfe BG (2005). Proteomic Analysis of Somatic Embryogenesis in Medicago truncatula : Explant Cultures Grown under 6-Benzylaminopurine and 1-Naphthaleneacetic Acid Treatments. Plant Physiology. 137 : 1250-1260.
Imin N , Kerim T, Weinman JJ and Rolfe BG (2004). Effect of early cold stress on the maturation of rice anthers. Proteomics 4:1873-1882.
Imin N , De Jong F, Mathesius U, van Noorden G, Saeed NA, Wang XD, Rose RJ and Rolfe BG 2004. Proteome reference maps of Medicago truncatula embryogenic cell cultures generated from single protoplasts. Proteomics. 4: 1883-1896.
Mathesius U, Imin N , Natera SH and Rolfe BG (2003). Proteomics as a Functional Genomics Tool. Book Chapter in "Plant Functional Genomics: Methods and Protocols", Grotewold, E. (ed) Humana Press, NJ. Methods in Molecular Biology Series, volume 236: 395-413.
Kerim T, Imin N , Weinman JJ and Rolfe BG (2003). Proteome analysis of male gametophyte development in rice anthers. Proteomics. 3(5): 738-751.
Kerim T, Imin N , Weinman JJ, Rolfe BG (2003). Proteomic analysis reveals developmentally expressed rice homologues of grass group II pollen allergens. Functional Plant Biology. 30(8): 843-852.
Mathesius U, Imin N , Chen HC, Djordjevic MA, Weinman JJ, Natera SHA, Morris AC, Kerim T, Weiller G and Rolfe BG (2002). Evaluation of proteome reference maps for cross-species identification of proteins by peptide mass fingerprinting. Proteomics. 2(9): 1288-1303.
Imin N , Kerim T, Weinman JJ and Rolfe BG (2001). Characterisation of rice anther proteins expressed at the young microspore stage. Proteomics 1: 1149-1161.
Networked publication
ANU-2DPAGE
( http://semele.anu.edu.au/
): Imin N., Mathesius U. , Minogue P. and Weinman J. J. (2001)
ANU Two-Dimensional Gel Electrophoresis Database.
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