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DTSTART:20260424T183000Z
DTEND:20260424T193000Z
SUMMARY:10th Annual McCully Lecture
In Plant Biology
DESCRIPTION:Dr. Xue Pan



Assistant Professor, Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of Toronto, Scarborough



Small Domains, Big Impact: How Plant Hormones Control Growth and Development



Plants are masters of adaptation. Lacking the ability to move, they rely on sophisticated internal signaling systems to reshape their growth and development in response to an ever-changing environment. Central to this process are master hormones like auxin, which coordinate everything from leaf shape to root architecture. A major mystery remains: how does a single chemical signal translate into such diverse and precise biological outcomes? A key piece of this puzzle resides at the cell’s "command center": the plasma membrane. This dynamic outer layer helps coordinate signals by organizing signaling components into tiny clusters called nanodomains. In this seminar, I will discuss how we use a combination of TurboID-based proteomics and live-cell imaging with single-particle tracking to study these nanodomains in action. Our research identifies a key regulatory protein that acts as a molecular anchor, tethering signaling molecules and regulating their nanodomain dynamics at the plasma membrane to ensure proper signaling output. By bridging the gap between nanoscale cellular organization and "real-world" traits, this work offers new strategies for improving crop development and resilience in a changing climate.



About the speaker  



Dr. Xue Pan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto Scarborough. She earned her MSc from Dalhousie University, where she focused on the agronomic evaluation of oilseed crops. She then completed her PhD at the University of Alberta, studying flaxseed oil biosynthesis. Following her PhD, she conducted postdoctoral research at the University of California, Riverside, as an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow, where she explored the role of membrane nanodomains in plant cell polarization. Her lab investigates plant lipid synthesis, modification, and signalling, with the goal of developing innovative engineering strategies to enhance crop productivity and resilience to climate change.

Join: https://carleton-ca.zoom.us/j/96486910035?pwd=aUJYbkdLZEk1WXBFNUUyTjFheUM5UT09#success
LOCATION:4440Q Carleton Technology and Training Centre, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Dr, Ottawa, ON K1S 5B6
URL:https://carleton-ca.zoom.us/j/96486910035?pwd=aUJYbkdLZEk1WXBFNUUyTjFheUM5UT09#success
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