Analysis of the Activation of Chloroplast Translation and RNA Stabilization by PPR Proteins and PPR Protein Derived sRNAs

PPR proteins are essential for all steps in chloroplast RNA metabolism and thus for chloroplast biogenesis. Each PPR protein binds with high selectivity to just a few plastid RNAs. A subset of PPR proteins impacts the stability and translation of mRNAs. These PPR proteins cause footprints that accumulate as short RNAs (sRNAs). This proposal has two main goals: 1. Understanding the mechanistic details of how PPR proteins activate translation and how they stabilize mRNAs. 2. Understanding the role of sRNAs as potential regulators of chloroplast gene expression.