The RNA-dependent DNA methylation pathway is required to restrict SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE expression to specify a single female germ cell precursor in Arabidopsis
dc.contributor.author | Mendes, M.A. | |
dc.contributor.author | Petrella, R. | |
dc.contributor.author | Cucinotta, M. | |
dc.contributor.author | Vignati, E. | |
dc.contributor.author | Gatti, S. | |
dc.contributor.author | Pinto, S.C. | |
dc.contributor.author | Bird, D.C. | |
dc.contributor.author | Gregis, V. | |
dc.contributor.author | Dickinson, H. | |
dc.contributor.author | Tucker, M.R. | |
dc.contributor.author | Colombo, L. | |
dc.date.issued | 2020 | |
dc.description.abstract | In higher plants, the female germline is formed from the megaspore mother cell (MMC), a single cell in the premeiotic ovule. Previously, it was reported that mutants in the RNA-dependent DNA methylation (RdDM) pathway might be involved in restricting the female germline to a single nucellus cell. We show that the DRM methyltransferase double mutant drm1drm2 also presents ectopic enlarged cells, consistent with supernumerary MMC-like cells. In wild-type ovules, MMC differentiation requires SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE (SPL/NZZ), as demonstrated by the spl/nzz mutant failing to develop an MMC. We address the poorly understood upstream regulation of SPL/NZZ in ovules, showing that the RdDM pathway is important to restrict SPL/NZZ expression. In ago9, rdr6 and drm1drm2 mutants, SPL/NZZ is expressed ectopically, suggesting that the multiple MMC-like cells observed might be attributable to the ectopic expression of SPL/NZZ. We show that the ovule identity gene, SEEDSTICK, directly regulates AGO9 and RDR6 expression in the ovule and therefore indirectly regulates SPL/NZZ expression. A model is presented describing the network required to restrict SPL/NZZ expression to specify a single MMC. | |
dc.description.statementofresponsibility | Marta A. Mendes, Rosanna Petrella, Mara Cucinotta, Edoardo Vignati, Stefano Gatti, Sara C. Pinto, Dayton C. Bird, Veronica Gregis, Hugh Dickinson, Matthew R. Tucker and Lucia Colombo | |
dc.identifier.citation | Development, 2020; 147(23):dev194274.-1-dev194274.-11 | |
dc.identifier.doi | 10.1242/dev.194274 | |
dc.identifier.issn | 0950-1991 | |
dc.identifier.issn | 1477-9129 | |
dc.identifier.orcid | Bird, D.C. [0000-0001-7071-7937] | |
dc.identifier.orcid | Tucker, M.R. [0000-0003-4661-6700] | |
dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/2440/131873 | |
dc.language.iso | en | |
dc.publisher | The Company of Biologists | |
dc.relation.grant | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FT140100780 | |
dc.relation.grant | http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP180104092 | |
dc.rights | © 2020. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium provided that the original work is properly attributed. | |
dc.source.uri | https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.194274 | |
dc.subject | Female germline; MADS-box transcription factors; MMC; RdDM; SPOROCYTELESS; SEEDSTICK | |
dc.title | The RNA-dependent DNA methylation pathway is required to restrict SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE expression to specify a single female germ cell precursor in Arabidopsis | |
dc.type | Journal article | |
pubs.publication-status | Published |
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