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Title: An ortholog of CURLY LEAF / ENHANCER OF ZESTE like‐1 is required for proper flowering in Brachypodium distachyon

Journal Article · · The Plant Journal
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.13815· OSTI ID:1419893
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [2];  [3]; ORCiD logo [4];  [5];  [6]; ORCiD logo [6]; ORCiD logo [2]
  1. Laboratory of Genetics University of Wisconsin 425‐G Henry Mall Madison WI 53706 USA, Department of Biochemistry University of Wisconsin 433 Babcock Dr. Madison WI 53706 USA
  2. Laboratory of Genetics University of Wisconsin 425‐G Henry Mall Madison WI 53706 USA, Department of Biochemistry University of Wisconsin 433 Babcock Dr. Madison WI 53706 USA, DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center University of Wisconsin‐Madison Madison WI 53706 USA
  3. Department of Biochemistry University of Wisconsin 433 Babcock Dr. Madison WI 53706 USA
  4. Department of Biochemistry University of Wisconsin 433 Babcock Dr. Madison WI 53706 USA, DOE Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center University of Wisconsin‐Madison Madison WI 53706 USA
  5. Donald Danforth Plant Science Center St. Louis MO 63132 USA
  6. Laboratory of Genetics University of Wisconsin 425‐G Henry Mall Madison WI 53706 USA, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery University of Wisconsin, Madison Madison WI 53705 USA

Summary Many plants require prolonged exposure to cold to acquire the competence to flower. The process by which cold exposure results in competence is known as vernalization. In Arabidopsis thaliana , vernalization leads to the stable repression of the floral repressor FLOWERING LOCUS  C via chromatin modification, including an increase of trimethylation on lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27me3) by Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 ( PRC 2). Vernalization in pooids is associated with the stable induction of a floral promoter, VERNALIZATION 1 ( VRN1 ). From a screen for mutants with a reduced vernalization requirement in the model grass Brachypodium distachyon , we identified two recessive alleles of ENHANCER OF ZESTE ‐ LIKE  1 ( EZL 1 ). EZL 1 is orthologous to A. thaliana CURLY LEAF  1 , a gene that encodes the catalytic subunit of PRC 2. B. distachyon ezl1 mutants flower rapidly without vernalization in long‐day ( LD ) photoperiods; thus, EZL 1 is required for the proper maintenance of the vegetative state prior to vernalization. Transcriptomic studies in ezl1 revealed mis‐regulation of thousands of genes, including ectopic expression of several floral homeotic genes in leaves. Loss of EZL 1 results in the global reduction of H3K27me3 and H3K27me2, consistent with this gene making a major contribution to PRC 2 activity in B. distachyon . Furthermore, in ezl1 mutants, the flowering genes VRN 1 and AGAMOUS ( AG ) are ectopically expressed and have reduced H3K27me3. Artificial micro RNA knock‐down of either VRN 1 or AG in ezl1‐1 mutants partially restores wild‐type flowering behavior in non‐vernalized plants, suggesting that ectopic expression in ezl1 mutants may contribute to the rapid‐flowering phenotype.

Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
OSTI ID:
1419893
Journal Information:
The Plant Journal, Journal Name: The Plant Journal Vol. 93 Journal Issue: 5; ISSN 0960-7412
Publisher:
Wiley-BlackwellCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United Kingdom
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 18 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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