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Assistant Professor, School of Biological Sciences
School of Biological Sciences
Washington State University
Pullman, WA 99164-4236
Phone: (509)-335-7919
Fax: (509)-335-3184
Email: amccubb@mail.wsu.edu
Ph.D., 1993, Reading University U.K.
RESEARCH INTERESTS: Plant Reproduction
RESEARCH SUMMARY: The processes and signaling mechanisms involved
in the transport of the male gamete through the pistil to the ovule. These
include pollen tube growth and pollen pistil interactions, including the
array of self-incompatibility mechanisms found in flowering plants. Centering
on inter- and intra-cellular signaling in plant reproduction, there are
two main areas of research: 1) Intracellular signaling in pollen development
and tube growth, currently the roles of calcium-dependent protein kinases
(CDPKs) in these processes are under investigation, we have demonstrated
that a CDPK regulates the polarity of tip growth in pollen tubes and have
identified a number of putative downstream effectors of this isoform.
One such effector is a RhoGDI dissociation inhibitor which mediates the
recruitment of small GTPases to the plasma membrane at the pollen tube
tip. In addition we are studying the role and regulation of a vesicle
associated membrane protein (VAMP) which localizes to endocytic vesicles
at the pollen tube tip and we believe regulates the targeting of these
vesicles into proteolytic compartments. 2) The array of self-incompatibility
(S-I) mechanisms deployed by plants to prevent self-fertilization and
inbreeding. A number of different types of SI system are found in the
flowering plants, we are at present initiating molecular studies on two
systems for which there is very little molecular data to date. The first
is heteromorphic SI in Primula vulgaris, where floral morphology and a
biochemical incompatibility system combine to prevent self-fertilization.
REPRESENTATIVE PUBLICATIONS:
Yoon, G.M., Dowd, P.E., Gilroy, S. and McCubbin, A.G. (2006) Calcium-Dependent
Protein Kinase isoforms have distinct functions in pollen tube growth,
including regulating polarity. Plant Cell 18: 867-878.
McCubbin, A.G., Lee, C., and Hetrick, A. (2006). Identification of genes
showing differential expression between morphs in developing flowers of
Primula vulgaris. Sexual Plant Reproduction: 19: 51-62.
McCubbin, A.G. and Roalson, E.H. (2005) Construction of bacterial artificial
chromosome libraries for use in phylogenetic studies. Methods in Enzymology,
395: 384-399.
McCubbin, A.G. (2005) Lessons on signaling in plant self-incompatibility
systems. In: Intercellular Communication in Plants” (Annual Plant
Review Series) Ed. A. Fleming. Blackwell Publishing: pp. 240-275.
McCubbin, A.G., Ritchie, S.M., Swanson, S.J. and Gilroy, S. (2004) The
calcium-dependent protein kinase HvCDPK1 mediates the gibberellic acid
response of the barley aleurone through regulation of vacuolar function.
Plant Journal 39:206-218.
Sijacic, P., Wang, X., Skirpan, A.L., Wang, Y., Dowd, P.E., McCubbin,
A.G., Huang, S. and Kao, T.-h. (2004) Identification of the pollen determinant
of S-RNase-mediated self-incompatibility. Nature 429: 302-305.
Wang, Y., Tsukamoto, T., Yi, K.-w., Wang, X., Huang, S., McCubbin, A.G.
and Kao, T.-h. (2004) Chromosome walking in the Petunia inflata self-incompatibility
(S-) locus and gene identification in an 881-kb contig containing S2-RNase.
Plant Molecular Biology 54: 727-742.
Wang, Y., Wang, X., McCubbin, A.G., and Kao, T.-h. (2003) Genetic mapping
and molecular characterization of the self-incompatibility (S-) locus
in Petunia inflata. Plant Molecular Biology 53: 565-580.
Roalson E.H. and McCubbin A.G. (2003) S-RNases and sexual incompatibility:
structure, functions, and evolutionary perspectives. Molecular Phylogenetics
and Evolution 29: 490-506.
Skirpan A. L., McCubbin A. G., Ishimizu T., Wang X., Hu Y., Dowd P. E.,
Hong Ma, and T.-h.
Kao (2001) Isolation and characterization of Kinase Interacting Protein
1, a pollen protein that interacts with the kinase domain of PRK1, receptor-like
kinase of Petunia. Plant Physiol. 2001 126: 1480-1492.
McCubbin A.G. and Kao T.-h. (2000). Molecular recognition and response
in pollen and pistil
interactions. Annual. Review of Cell and Developmental Biology
16: 333-364.
McCubbin, A.G., Zuniga, C. and Kao, T.-h. (2000) Construction of a binary
bacterial artificial
chromosome library of Petunia inflata and the identification of
large genomic fragments linked to the self-incompatibility (S)
locus. Genome. 43(5): 820-826.
McCubbin, A.G., Wang, X. and Kao, T.-h. (2000). The use of differential
display to identify
cDNA markers at the S-locus of Petunia inflata. Genome
43 (4): 619-627.
McCubbin, A.G., Chung, Y. and Kao, T.-h. (1997). A mutant S3 RNase of
Petunia inflata
lacking RNase activity has an allele specific negative dominant effect
on self-incompatibility interactions. Plant Cell 9: 85-95.
Kao, T.-h. and McCubbin, A. G. (1996). How flowering plants discriminate
between self and
non-self pollen to prevent inbreeding. Proceedings of the National
Academy of Science USA, 93: 12059-12065.
Lee, H.-S., Karunandaa, B., McCubbin, A.G., Gilroy, S. and Kao, T.-h.
(1996). PRK1, a
receptor-like protein kinase of Petunia inflata, is essential for
post-meiotic development in pollen. Plant Journal 9: 613-624.
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