The regulation of phosphoinositide homeostasis by Sec14-type lipid binding proteins

A second type of molecules we are intrigued by are phosphoinositides (PIPs), the lipid-arm of the inositol signaling. These lipid messengers regulate several signaling events at membrane interfaces, and thereby not only regulate developmental processes, but importantly also enable the translation of environmental cues into cellular responses. Our work has shed important light into how one group of proteins, namely SEC14-type lipid binding proteins, regulate PIP homeostasis in yeast and plants. Besides determining key functions of yeast protein members in regulating vesicular trafficking, we characterized AtSFH1, a multi-domain SEC14 homolog that is essential for root hair development in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. We are particularly interested in further characterizing additional plant homologues to determine the role of these proteins in membrane morphogenesis, nutrient acquisition and plant immunity.