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Assistant Professor 206 Latham Hall (0390) Phone: (540) 231-0475
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Education | Research Interests | Research Support | Awards | Experience | Selected Publications
- Ph.D. University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France, 1999.
- M.S. University of Lyon, Lyon, France, 1996.
- B.S. University of Lyon, Lyon, France, 1995.
Nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient for plant growth. Tight control of nitrogen supply to the various organs of the plant is critical to maximize growth, defense and reproduction. Inorganic nitrogen (ammonium and nitrate) is transported from roots to shoots, and is reduced into organic nitrogen in the leaves. Amino acids are the prominent form of transported organic nitrogen from the leaves towards the growing organs like seeds and roots.
Amino acids are synthesized from intermediates of the carbohydrate metabolism. In addition to a role in protein synthesis, amino acids are used as substrates for the synthesis of a large number of secondary metabolites necessary for plant defense and fitness (e.g. glucosinolates, lignins), and participate in numerous biochemical reactions. Consequently, amino acid metabolism needs to be finely tuned to carbon and nitrogen availability, to demand from other branches of the metabolism and to the need of the growing organs in reduced nitrogen. At the cell level, amino acids are transported across membranes for transfer between organelles (chloroplast, mitochondrion) and between plant cells (xylem and phloem transport). Transport is mediated by membrane proteins able to transport amino acids towards the cytosol (importers) or out of the cell (exporters). Numerous amino acid importers have been isolated and characterized during the past two decades, but the identity of amino acid exporters is still elusive.
The long term goal of my laboratory is to understand the mechanisms of co-regulation of amino acid content, transport and partitioning in the plant. We use Arabidopsis as a model plant because of the capability for large scale genetic screening, mapping and metabolic analyses. These aims will be achieved using two approaches:
- Identification of amino acid exporters, using the previously identified gdu1-1D mutant, affected in amino acid export.
- Characterization of the regulatory pathways responsible for co-ordination of amino acid synthesis and transport using a systems biology approach.
We will later move on to canola and corn where the genes identified in Arabidopsis can be used to manipulate seed protein content and increase in nutritious quality.
- NSF, Isolation and characterization of amino acid exporters. 2011-2014
- German Research Foundation (DFG), Characterization of the role of the GDU1 gene. 2005-2007
- European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO) Postdoctoral Fellow, 2002-2004
- Assistant Professor, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. 2009-present
- Postdoctoral Research Associate, Dr. Frommer, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA. 2007-2009
- Postdoctoral Research Associate, IZMB, Bonn, Germany. 2005-2006
- Postdoctoral Fellow, Dr. Frommer, ZMBP, Tuebingen, Germany. 2002-2004
- Research Scientist, Dr. Wingate, Aventis CropScience, RTP, NC. 2000-2001
- Graduate Student, Dr. Sentenac, INRA Montpellier, Montpellier, France. 1996-1999
- Okumoto S. and Pilot G. (2011) Amino acid export in plants: a missing link in nitrogen cycling. Molecular Plant. 4: 453-463.
- Liu G., Ji .Y, Bhuiyan N.H., Pilot G., Selvaraj G., Zou J. and Wei Y. (2010) Amino Acid Homeostasis Modulates Salicylic Acid-Associated Redox Status and Defense Responses in Arabidopsis. The Plant Cell. 22: 3845-3863.
- Lalonde S., Sero A., Pratelli R., Pilot G., Chen J., Sardi M.I., Parsa S.A., Kim D.-Y., Acharya B.R., Stein E.V., Hu H.-C., Villiers F., Takeda K., Yang Y., Han Y.S., Schwacke R., Chiang W., Kato N., Loque D., Assmann S.M., Kwak J.M., Schroeder J., Rhee S.Y. and Frommer W.B. (2010) A membrane protein / signaling protein interaction network for Arabidopsis version AMPv2. Frontiers in Physiology. 1:24
- Pratelli R., Voll L., Horst R., Frommer W.-B. and Pilot G. (2010) Stimulation of non-selective amino acid export by Glutamine Dumper proteins. Plant Physiology, 152: 762-773
- Pratelli R., Pilot G. (2006) The plant-specific VIMAG domain of GLUTAMINE DUMPER1 is necessary for the function of the protein in Arabidopsis. FEBS letters, 580:6961-6966.
- Pilot G., Stransky H., Bushey D.F., Pratelli R., Ludewig U., Wingate V.P., and Frommer W.B. (2004) Overexpression of GLUTAMINE DUMPER1 leads to hypersecretion of glutamine from Hydathodes of Arabidopsis leaves. The Plant Cell, 16:1827-1840.
- Pilot G., Gaymard F., Mouline K., Chérel I., Sentenac H. (2003) Regulated expression of Arabidopsis Shaker K+ channel genes involved in K+ uptake and distribution in the plant. Plant Molecular Biology, 51:773-787.
- Pilot G., Pratelli R., Gaymard F., Meyer Y., Sentenac H. (2003) The five group-distribution of the Shaker-like K+ channel family in higher plants. Journal of Molecular Evolution, 56:418-434.
- Pilot G., Lacombe B., Gaymard F., Chérel I., Boucherez J., Thibaud J.-B., and Sentenac H. (2001) Guard cell inward K+ channel activity in Arabidopsis involves expression of the twin channel subunits KAT1 and KAT2. The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 276:3215-3221.
- Lacombe B., Pilot G., Michard E., Gaymard F., Sentenac H., and Thibaud J.-B. (2000) A Shaker-like channel with weak rectification is expressed in both source and sink phloem tissues of Arabidopsis. The Plant Cell, 12:837-851.
- Gaymard F., Pilot G., Lacombe B., Bouchez B., Bruneau D., Boucherez J., Michaux-Ferrière N., Thibaud J.-B., and Sentenac H. (1998) Identification and disruption of a plant Shaker-like outward channel involved in K+ release into the xylem sap. Cell, 94:647-655.