NICOTIANAMINE SYNTHASE activity affects nucleolar iron accumulation and impacts rDNA silencing and RNA methylation in Arabidopsis.

ABSTRACT: In plant cells, a large pool of iron (Fe) is contained in the nucleolus, as well as in chloroplasts and mitochondria. A central determinant for intracellular distribution of Fe is nicotianamine (NA) generated by NICOTIANAMINE SYNTHASE (NAS). Here, we used Arabidopsis thaliana plants with disrupted NAS genes to study the accumulation of nucleolar iron and understand its role in nucleolar functions and more specifically in rRNA gene expression. We found that nas124 triple mutant plants, which contained lower quantities of the iron ligand NA, also contained less iron in the nucleolus. This was concurrent with the expression of normally silenced rRNA genes from nucleolar organizer regions 2 (NOR2). Notably, in nas234 triple mutant plants, which also contained lower quantities of NA, nucleolar

SUBMITTER: Montacie C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10433931 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature