Noncoding SNPs influence a distinct phase of Polycomb silencing to destabilize long-term epigenetic memory at Arabidopsis FLC
Qüesta, Julia I. (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Antoniou-Kourounioti, Rea Laila (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Rosa, Stefanie (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Li, Peijin (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Duncan, Susan (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Whittaker, Charles (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Howard, Martin (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))
Dean, Caroline (Norwich Research Park. John Innes Centre (UK))

Date:	2020
Abstract:	In Arabidopsis thaliana, the cold-induced epigenetic regulation of FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) involves distinct phases of Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) silencing. During cold, a PHD-PRC2 complex metastably and digitally nucleates H3K27me3 within FLC. On return to warm, PHD-PRC2 spreads across the locus delivering H3K27me3 to maintain long-term silencing. Here, we studied natural variation in this process in Arabidopsis accessions, exploring Lov-1, which shows FLC reactivation on return to warm, a feature characteristic of FLC in perennial Brassicaceae. This analysis identifies an additional phase in this Polycomb silencing mechanism downstream from H3K27me3 spreading. In this long-term silencing (perpetuated) phase, the PHD proteins are lost from the nucleation region and silencing is likely maintained by the read-write feedbacks associated with H3K27me3. A combination of noncoding SNPs in the nucleation region mediates instability in this long-term silencing phase with the result that Lov-1 FLC frequently digitally reactivates in individual cells, with a probability that diminishes with increasing cold duration. We propose that this decrease in reactivation probability is due to reducedDNAreplication after flowering. Overall, this work defines an additional phase in the Polycomb mechanism instrumental in natural variation of silencing, and provides avenues to dissect broader evolutionary changes at FLC.
Note:	CRAG: Current Address de Julia I. Qüesta
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Flowering locus C ; Polycomb ; Epigenetics ; Mathematical modeling ; Natural variation ; Vernalization
Published in:	Genes & Development, Vol. 34, Issue 5-6 (March 2020) , p. 446-461, ISSN 1549-5477

DOI: 10.1101/gad.333245.119
PMID: 32001513

17 p, 5.0 MB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > CRAG (Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles