A gene regulatory network involving the class II ERF transcriptional repressors in leaf senescence of Arabidopsis thaliana

ABSTRACT: Leaf senescence is the final developmental process that includes the mobilization of nutrients from old leaves to newly growing tissues. The progression of leaf senescence requires dynamic but coordinated changes of gene expression. Although several transcription factors (TFs) are known to be involved in both negative and positive modes of regulation of leaf senescence, detailed mechanisms that underlie the progression of leaf senescence are largely unknown. We report here that the class II ERF transcriptional repressors are controlled by proteasome and regulate the progression of leaf senescence in Arabidopsis. Since we had previously demonstrated that NtERF3, a model of tobacco class II ERFs, specifically interacts with a ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme, we examined the stability of NtERF3 and found that bacterially produced NtERF3 was rapidly degraded by plant protein extracts in vitro. Whereas NtERF3 accumulation was low in plants, it was increased by treatment with a proteasome inhibitor. Arabidopsis class II ERFs, namely, AtERF4 and AtERF8, were also controlled by proteasome and stabilized by aging of plants. The transgenic plants in which NtERF3, AtERF4, and AtERF8 were individually expressed under the control of the 35S promoter exhibited the precocious leaf senescence. Our microarray and RT-PCR analyses revealed that AtERF4 regulated expression of genes involving in various stress responses and leaf senescence. In contrast, aterf4 aterf8 mutant exhibited delayed leaf senescence. Taken together, we present the important role of class II ERFs in the regulation of leaf senescence. Transcriptomes of 35S:AtERF4-HA and 35S:NLS-GFP-HA (control) Arabidopsis two-weeks seedling were compared.

ORGANISM(S): Arabidopsis thaliana

SUBMITTER: Nobuitaka Mitsuda 

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-41053 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress