Localization of Chromatin Marks in Arabidopsis Early Embryos.

ABSTRACT

During early embryo development, profound changes in chromatin structure and regulation take place. It is difficult to study these changes in plant embryos however, largely because of their relative inaccessibility, which impedes the application of current epigenomic and biochemistry protocols. To circumvent this issue and to analyze the epigenetic status of the embryo at both the cellular and subcellular level, we describe here a simple method to immunolocalize chromatin marks in whole mount early Arabidopsis embryos, either within maternal tissues or isolated from seeds. We show that this protocol can be combined with fluorescent protein markers, allowing for the simultaneous detection of several chromatin components and/or cell fate markers. This new protocol will facilitate deciphering the epigenetic circuits controlling early embryogenesis in plants.