Two major objectives of modern plant research are to develop a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms for control of agriculturally important traits and to then use this information to identify new approaches to modifying these traits. This group studies several aspects of metabolic and developmental regulation that are critical determinants of plant form and function. Starch is a short and long-term storage form of carbon and cellular energy in plants, and the deposition of phosphorus during seed development is a key component of energy and mineral storage. The control of starch biosynthesis and storage phosphorus metabolism in seed tissues are complex regulatory processes that are central to determining the nutritional value of cereal grains. Analysis of the genetic and molecular mechanisms for control of starch and phytic acid metabolism will contribute to our understanding of seed development and increase our ability to manipulate these essential traits in cereal crops. Seed dormancy is a unique form of developmental arrest utilized by most plants to temporally disperse germination and thus optimize progeny survival. Defining the regulatory mechanisms of dormancy may lead to the development of practices that will alter dormancy in weed seeds thus providing novel, non-chemical approaches to weed management. Identification and analysis of plant photoreceptors and membrane receptors and their mechanisms of action are important approaches to understanding how communication within and between plant cells is carried out and how plants sense and respond to environmental stimuli. Progress in defining molecular pathways in these areas will advance our knowledge of plant biology and may prove very useful to future efforts to obtain optimal growth, development, and consequently productivity of agriculturally important crop plants.