Project description:Background: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are toxic, widely-distributed, environmentally persistent, and carcinogenic byproducts of carbon-based fuel combustion. Previously, plant studies have shown that PAHs induce oxidative stress, reduce growth, and cause leaf deformation as well as tissue necrosis. To understand the transcriptional changes that occur during these processes, we performed microarray experiments on Arabidopsis thaliana L. under phenanthrene treatment, and compared the results to published Arabidopsis microarray data representing a variety of stress and hormone treatments. In addition, to probe hormonal aspects of PAH stress, we assayed transgenic ethylene-inducible reporter plants as well as ethylene pathway mutants under phenanthrene treatment. Results: Microarray results revealed numerous perturbations in signaling and metabolic pathways that regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and responses related to pathogen defense. A number of glutathione S-transferases that may tag xenobiotics for transport to the vacuole were upregulated. Comparative microarray analyses indicated that the phenanthrene response was closely related to other ROS conditions, including pathogen defense conditions. The ethylene-inducible transgenic reporters were activated by phenanthrene. Mutant experiments showed that PAH inhibits growth through an ethylene-independent pathway, as PAH-treated ethylene-insensitive etr1-4 mutants exhibited a greater growth reduction than WT. Further, phenanthrene-treated, constitutive ethylene signaling mutants had longer roots than the untreated control plants, indicating that the PAH inhibits parts of the ethylene signaling pathway. Conclusions: This study identified major physiological systems that participate in the PAH-induced stress response in Arabidopsis. At the transcriptional level, the results identify specific gene targets that will be valuable in finding lead compounds and engineering increased tolerance. Collectively, the results open a number of new avenues for researching and improving plant resilience and PAH phytoremediation. Arabidopsis thaliana (ecotype Columbia) plants were long-day grown with +/- 0.25 mM phenanthrene in sterile plates at 23C for 21d before harvest. At least 20 plants were pooled prior to each mRNA extraction.
Project description:Background: Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are toxic, widely-distributed, environmentally persistent, and carcinogenic byproducts of carbon-based fuel combustion. Previously, plant studies have shown that PAHs induce oxidative stress, reduce growth, and cause leaf deformation as well as tissue necrosis. To understand the transcriptional changes that occur during these processes, we performed microarray experiments on Arabidopsis thaliana L. under phenanthrene treatment, and compared the results to published Arabidopsis microarray data representing a variety of stress and hormone treatments. In addition, to probe hormonal aspects of PAH stress, we assayed transgenic ethylene-inducible reporter plants as well as ethylene pathway mutants under phenanthrene treatment. Results: Microarray results revealed numerous perturbations in signaling and metabolic pathways that regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and responses related to pathogen defense. A number of glutathione S-transferases that may tag xenobiotics for transport to the vacuole were upregulated. Comparative microarray analyses indicated that the phenanthrene response was closely related to other ROS conditions, including pathogen defense conditions. The ethylene-inducible transgenic reporters were activated by phenanthrene. Mutant experiments showed that PAH inhibits growth through an ethylene-independent pathway, as PAH-treated ethylene-insensitive etr1-4 mutants exhibited a greater growth reduction than WT. Further, phenanthrene-treated, constitutive ethylene signaling mutants had longer roots than the untreated control plants, indicating that the PAH inhibits parts of the ethylene signaling pathway. Conclusions: This study identified major physiological systems that participate in the PAH-induced stress response in Arabidopsis. At the transcriptional level, the results identify specific gene targets that will be valuable in finding lead compounds and engineering increased tolerance. Collectively, the results open a number of new avenues for researching and improving plant resilience and PAH phytoremediation.
Project description:Autophagy involves massive degradation of intracellular components and functions as a conserved system that helps cells to adapt to adverse conditions. In Arabidopsis thaliana, submergence induces the transcription of autophagy-related (ATG) genes and the formation of autophagosomes. To study the role of autophagy during submergence, we performed transcriptome analysis with atg5, an autophagy-defective mutant, under submergence conditions. Our data showed that submergence changed the expression profile of DEG in the atg5 versus wild-type.
Project description:General translational repression is predicted as a key process to reduce energy consumption under hypoxia. We have previously showed that mRNA loading onto polysome is reduced in Arabidopsis under submergence. Here, we showed that plant stress activated GCN2 (general control nonderepressible 2) can phosphorylate eIF2a (Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 2a) in Arabidopsis under submergence, and this process is reversible after desubmergence. Compared to the wild-type, the reduction in polysome loading during submergence was less severe in the gcn2 mutant. Transgenic lines overexpressing GCN2 had more ATP and conferred better tolerance under submergence, suggesting that GCN2 might modulate the dynamics of translation to adjust the energy homeostasis under hypoxia. Interestingly, GCN2-eIF2a signaling was activated by ethylene under submergence. However, GCN2 activity was not affected in ein2-5 and eil1ein3 under submergence, suggesting that GCN2 activity was regulated by noncanonical ethylene signaling. In addition, the polysome loading was retained in both ein2-5 and etr1-1 under submergence, implying that ethylene modulated the dynamic translation under submergence via EIN2 and GCN2. Notably, our NGS analysis also demonstrated that EIN2 and GCN2 regulated the translation of 23 core hypoxia genes as well as 53% translational repressed genes under submergence. On the other hand, EIN2 and GCN2 also affected the expression of genes involved in hypoxic response, ethylene response, biotic stress and negative regulation of cytokinin signaling. Taken together, these demonstrated that entrapped ethylene triggers GCN2 and EIN2 to ensure the translation of stress required proteins under submergence and also provide a step stone for future investigation how eukaryotic cells modulate the translation to response for the changeable environments.
Project description:In rice (Oryza sativa L.), the haplotype at the multigenic SUBMERGENCE 1 (SUB1) locus determines survival of prolonged submergence. SUB1 encodes two or three group VII Ethylene Response Factor (ERF) family transcription factors, SUB1A, SUB1B and SUB1C. A highly submergence-inducible SUB1A allele is present in lines that are submergence tolerant. This gene is the determinant of submergence tolerance. Here, the heterologous ectopic expression of rice SUB1A and SUB1C in Arabidopsis thaliana was employed to assess the transcriptional network mobilized by ectopic expression of SUB1A and SUB1C.
Project description:Ethylene induced hyponastic growth in Arabidopsis thaliana F.F. Millenaar L.A.C.J. Voesenek and A.J.M. Peeters Our aim is to identify genes involved in the ethylene induced hyponastic growth. Upon submergence some plant species like Rumex palustris changes its leaf angle (hyponastic growth) and shows enhanced petiole elongation to reach the water surface. In Rumex palustris the hyponastic growth is initiated by an increased concentration of ethylene due to physical entrapment and ongoing ethylene biosynthesis. A proteomics, genomics and genetical approach to improve our understanding of above described flooding-induced responses are not feasible in Rumex palustris since genomic information about this species is limited. However it is possible to use the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana as a tool in flooding research. Natural accessions (Be0 Col Cvi Kas Ler Nd Rld Shah and Ws) show considerable genetic variation in hyponastic growth upon exposure to ethylene Col exhibiting the largest effect (maximum rate after 3 hours) and Ler no effect whatsoever. Using a computer controlled digital camera the hyponastic growth is measured in great detail. Next to ethylene addition also a transfer to low light causes hyponastic growth. This seems to be an ethylene independent pathway because etr1 and ctr1 showed hyponastic growth after transfer to low light. Ethylene and low light showed additive effects in Col. It is likely that ethylene induces more changes in gene expression than only the ones involved in hyponastic growth. By subtracting changes in the Ler expression profile from changes in the Col expression profile we expect to find why Col and Ler respond differently on ethylene by finding specific ethylene induced genes that are involved in hyponastic growth. The expression profile of Col following transfer to low light will be substracted from Col following ethylene addition to distinguish between genes that are involved in hyponastic growth but are not specific for ethylene induced hyponastic growth. There are strong indications in Rumex palustris that other hormones i.e. auxin ABAand GA are involved in the ethylene induced hyponastic growth. Currently mutants in ethylene auxin and ABA biosynthesis and/or signal transduction are screened for hyponastic growth. Preliminary results showed that also in Arabidopsis these other hormones are involved in ethylene induced hyponastic growth. Beside the mutant approach we also started a proteomics and a PCR based differential screen approach. Together with the proposed transcriptome analysis we hope to find new genes involved in ethylene induced hyponastic growth.