FIONA1-mediated methylation of the 3'UTR of FLC affects FLC transcript levels and flowering in Arabidopsis.

Adenosine bases of RNA can be transiently modified by the deposition of a methyl-group to form N6-methyladenosine (m6A). This adenosine-methylation is an ancient process and the enzymes involved are evolutionary highly conserved. A genetic screen designed to identify suppressors of late flowering transgenic Arabidopsis plants overexpressing the miP1a microProtein yielded a new allele of the FIONA1 (FIO1) m6A-methyltransferase. To characterize the early flowering phenotype of fio1 mutant plants we employed an integrative approach of mRNA-seq, Nanopore direct RNA-sequencing and meRIP-seq to identify differentially expressed transcripts as well as differentially methylated RNAs. We provide evidence that FIO1 is the elusive methyltransferase responsible for the 3'-end methylation of the FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) transcript. Furthermore, our genetic and biochemical data suggest that 3'-methylation stabilizes FLC mRNAs and non-methylated FLC is a target for rapid degradation.

Harnessing the Power of an Extensive EMS-Induced Sorghum Population for Rapid Crop Improvement.

Plant breeders leverage mutagenesis using chemical, biological, and physical mutagens to create novel trait variations. Many widely used sorghum genotypes have a narrow genetic base, which hinders improvements using classical breeding. Enhancing the diversity of the sorghum genome thus remains a key priority for sorghum breeders. To accelerate the genetic enhancement of sorghum, an extensive library comprised of seeds from 150,000 individual mutant plants of the Sorghum bicolor inbred line BTx623 was established using ethyl methanesulphonate (EMS) as a mutagen. The sorghum mutant library was bulked into 1498 pools (~100 seed heads per pool). In each pool, DNA was extracted from a subset of the seed and screened using the FIND-IT technology based on droplet digital PCR. All 43 nucleotide substitutions that were screened using FIND-IT were identified, demonstrating the potential to identify any EMS-derived mutation in an elite line of sorghum within days. This diverse library represents the largest collection of sorghum mutants ever conceived, estimated to cover 240% of all possible EMS-induced mutation points within the Sorghum genome. Using FIND-IT, the speed at which a specific desired EMS-derived mutation can be identified is a major upgrade to conventional reverse genetic techniques. Additionally, the ease at which valuable variants can be integrated into elite commercial lines is a far simpler and less expensive process compared to genome editing. Genomic variations in the library will have direct utility as a breeding resource for commercial sorghum applications, allowing enhanced adaptation to climate change and enhanced yield potential in marginal environments.

Multi-level analysis of the interactions between REVOLUTA and MORE AXILLARY BRANCHES 2 in controlling plant development reveals parallel, independent and antagonistic functions.

Class III homeodomain leucine zipper (HD-ZIPIII) transcription factors play fundamental roles in controlling plant development. The known HD-ZIPIII target genes encode proteins involved in the production and dissipation of the auxin signal, HD-ZIPII transcription factors and components that feedback to regulate HD-ZIPIII expression or protein activity. Here, we have investigated the regulatory hierarchies of the control of MORE AXILLARY BRANCHES2 (MAX2) by the HD-ZIPIII protein REVOLUTA (REV). We found that REV can interact with the promoter of MAX2 In agreement, rev10D gain-of-function mutants had increased levels of MAX2 expression, while rev loss-of-function mutants showed lower levels of MAX2 in some tissues. Like REV, MAX2 plays known roles in the control of plant architecture, photobiology and senescence, which prompted us to initiate a multi-level analysis of growth phenotypes of hd-zipIII, max2 and respective higher order mutants thereof. Our data suggest a complex relationship of synergistic and antagonistic activities between REV and MAX2; these interactions appear to depend on the developmental context and do not all involve the direct regulation of MAX2 by REV.

Light affects tissue patterning of the hypocotyl in the shade-avoidance response.

Plants have evolved strategies to avoid shade and optimize the capture of sunlight. While some species are tolerant to shade, plants such as Arabidopsis thaliana are shade-intolerant and induce elongation of their hypocotyl to outcompete neighboring plants. We report the identification of a developmental module acting downstream of shade perception controlling vascular patterning. We show that Arabidopsis plants react to shade by increasing the number and types of water-conducting tracheary elements in the vascular cylinder to maintain vascular density constant. Mutations in genes affecting vascular patterning impair the production of additional xylem and also show defects in the shade-induced hypocotyl elongation response. Comparative analysis of the shade-induced transcriptomes revealed differences between wild type and vascular patterning mutants and it appears that the latter mutants fail to induce sets of genes encoding biosynthetic and cell wall modifying enzymes. Our results thus set the stage for a deeper understanding of how growth and patterning are coordinated in a dynamic environment.

Heterologous microProtein expression identifies LITTLE NINJA, a dominant regulator of jasmonic acid signaling.

MicroProteins are small, often single-domain proteins that are sequence-related to larger, often multidomain proteins. Here, we used a combination of comparative genomics and heterologous synthetic misexpression to isolate functional cereal microProtein regulators. Our approach identified LITTLE NINJA (LNJ), a microProtein that acts as a modulator of jasmonic acid (JA) signaling. Ectopic expression of LNJ in Arabidopsis resulted in stunted plants that resembled the decuple JAZ (jazD) mutant. In fact, comparing the transcriptomes of transgenic LNJ overexpressor plants and jazD revealed a large overlap of deregulated genes, suggesting that ectopic LNJ expression altered JA signaling. Transgenic Brachypodium plants with elevated LNJ expression levels showed deregulation of JA signaling as well and displayed reduced growth and enhanced production of side shoots (tiller). This tillering effect was transferable between grass species, and overexpression of LNJ in barley and rice caused similar traits. We used a clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) approach and created a LNJ-like protein in Arabidopsis by deleting parts of the coding sentence of the AFP2 gene that encodes a NINJA-domain protein. These afp2-crispr mutants were also stunted in size and resembled jazD Thus, similar genome-engineering approaches can be exploited as a future tool to create LNJ proteins and produce cereals with altered architectures.

A microProtein repressor complex in the shoot meristem controls the transition to flowering.

MicroProteins are potent post-translational regulators. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), the miP1a/b microProteins delay floral transition by forming a complex with CONSTANS (CO) and the co-repressor protein TOPLESS. To better understand the function of the miP1a microProtein in floral repression, we performed a genetic suppressor screen to identify suppressors of miP1a (sum) function. One mutant, sum1, exhibited strong suppression of the miP1a-induced late-flowering phenotype. Mapping of sum1 identified another allele of the gene encoding the histone H3K4 demethylase JUMONJI14 (JMJ14), which is required for miP1a function. Plants carrying mutations in JMJ14 exhibit an early flowering phenotype that is largely dependent on CO activity, supporting an additional role for CO in the repressive complex. We further investigated whether miP1a function involves chromatin modification, performed whole-genome methylome sequencing studies with plants ectopically expressing miP1a, and identified differentially methylated regions (DMRs). Among these DMRs is the promoter of FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT), the prime target of miP1a that is ectopically methylated in a JMJ14-dependent manner. Moreover, when aberrantly expressed at the shoot apex, CO induces early flowering, but only when JMJ14 is mutated. Detailed analysis of the genetic interaction among CO, JMJ14, miP1a/b, and TPL revealed a potential role for CO as a repressor of flowering in the shoot apical meristem (SAM). Altogether, our results suggest that a repressor complex operates in the SAM, likely to maintain it in an undifferentiated state until leaf-derived florigen signals induce SAM conversion into a floral meristem.

Approaches to identify and characterize microProteins and their potential uses in biotechnology.

MicroProteins are small proteins that contain a single protein domain and are related to larger, often multi-domain proteins. At the molecular level, microProteins act by interfering with the formation of higher order protein complexes. In the past years, several microProteins have been identified in plants and animals that strongly influence biological processes. Due to their ability to act as dominant regulators in a targeted manner, microProteins have a high potential for biotechnological use. In this review, we present different ways in which microProteins are generated and we elaborate on techniques used to identify and characterize them. Finally, we give an outlook on possible applications in biotechnology.