Warm temperature modifies lineage cell fates to reduce stomata production in Arabidopsis
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ABSTRACT: Stomatal abundance decrease in Arabidopsis triggered by warm-temperature is attributed to PIF4-mediated repression of SPEECHLESS (SPCH) expression. We identified the unknown developmental and transcriptional basis of this adaptive response. We analyzed stomatal lineage progression at warm- and control-T combining live-cell imaging and lineage-cell tracing with epidermal phenotyping, genetics and transcriptomics. Warm-T or PIF4 overexpression caused a fraction of stomatal precursors to lose their identity and become diverted, explaining stomatal index reduction, and hinting at developmental mechanisms underlying lineage progression. Triggering diverted precursor fate required extended exposure to warm-T, below which the process is reversible and stomatal index remains unchanged. Despite heat-induced gene reprogramming silenced key positive drivers of stomatal development as SPCH and MUTE, most lineages progressed and formed stomata. Transcriptomics revealed that warm-T shifted lineages towards uncommitted cell stages, which regained committed fates during recovery at control temperature. This indicates that stomatal development under changing temperatures occurs through partly rewired gene circuits involving alternative pathways.
ORGANISM(S): Arabidopsis thaliana
PROVIDER: GSE278519 | GEO | 2025/06/24
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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