Polymerase IV Plays a Crucial Role in Pollen Development in Capsella.

Wang, Zhenxing, Butel, Nicolas, Santos-González, Juan, Borges, Filipe, Yi, Jun, Martienssen, Robert A, Martinez, German, Köhler, Claudia (April 2020) Polymerase IV Plays a Crucial Role in Pollen Development in Capsella. The Plant Cell, 32 (4). pp. 950-966. ISSN 1040-4651

URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31988265
DOI: 10.1105/tpc.19.00938

Abstract

In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), DNA-dependent RNA polymerase IV (Pol IV) is required for the formation of transposable element (TE)-derived small RNA transcripts. These transcripts are processed by DICER-LIKE3 into 24-nucleotide small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) that guide RNA-directed DNA methylation. In the pollen grain, Pol IV is also required for the accumulation of 21/22-nucleotide epigenetically activated siRNAs, which likely silence TEs via post-transcriptional mechanisms. Despite this proposed role of Pol IV, its loss of function in Arabidopsis does not cause a discernible pollen defect. Here, we show that the knockout of NRPD1, encoding the largest subunit of Pol IV, in the Brassicaceae species Capsella (Capsella rubella), caused postmeiotic arrest of pollen development at the microspore stage. As in Arabidopsis, all TE-derived siRNAs were depleted in Capsella nrpd1 microspores. In the wild-type background, the same TEs produced 21/22-nucleotide and 24-nucleotide siRNAs; these processes required Pol IV activity. Arrest of Capsella nrpd1 microspores was accompanied by the deregulation of genes targeted by Pol IV-dependent siRNAs. TEs were much closer to genes in Capsella compared with Arabidopsis, perhaps explaining the essential role of Pol IV in pollen development in Capsella. Our discovery that Pol IV is functionally required in Capsella microspores emphasizes the relevance of investigating different plant models.

Item Type: Paper
Subjects: organism description > plant > Arabidopsis
bioinformatics
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > DNA expression
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > enzymes > DNA polymerase
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > enzymes
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > mutations
organism description > plant
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types > plant proteins
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > protein structure, function, modification > protein types
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > siRNA
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > DNA expression > transposable elements
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Martienssen lab
SWORD Depositor: CSHL Elements
Depositing User: CSHL Elements
Date: April 2020
Date Deposited: 24 May 2021 15:32
Last Modified: 01 Feb 2024 19:20
PMCID: PMC7145478
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/40140

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