bims-plasge 2020-12-06 papers

Issue of 2020–12–06
three papers selected by
Vera S. Bogdanova, ИЦиГ СО РАН

J Exp Bot. 2020 Nov 28. pii: eraa553. [Epub ahead of print]

Pod indehiscence in common bean is associated to the fine regulation of PvMYB26.

In legumes, pod shattering occurs when mature pods dehisce along the sutures, and detachment of the valves promotes seed dispersal. In Phaseolus vulgaris (L)., the major locus qPD5.1-Pv for pod indehiscence was identified recently. We developed a BC4/F4 introgression line population and narrowed the major locus down to a 22.5-kb region. Here, gene expression and a parallel histological analysis of dehiscent and indehiscent pods identified an AtMYB26 orthologue as the best candidate for loss of pod shattering, on a genomic region ~11 kb downstream of the highest associated peak. Based on mapping and expression data, we propose early and fine up-regulation of PvMYB26 in dehiscent pods. Detailed histological analysis establishes that pod indehiscence is associated to the lack of a functional abscission layer in the ventral sheath, and that the key anatomical modifications associated with pod shattering in common bean occur early during pod development. We finally propose that loss of pod shattering in legumes resulted from histological convergent evolution and that it is the result of selection at orthologous loci.

Keywords: MYB26 ; Phaseolus vulgaris L; Common bean; Convergent evolution; Gene expression; Genome-wide association study; Introgression lines; Pod anatomy; Pod shattering

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eraa553

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2020 Dec 03. pii: 202014294. [Epub ahead of print]

Coexpressed subunits of dual genetic origin define a conserved supercomplex mediating essential protein import into chloroplasts.

Silvia Ramundo, Yukari Asakura, Patrice A Salomé, Daniela Strenkert, Morgane Boone, Luke C M Mackinder, Kazuaki Takafuji, Emine Dinc, Michèle Rahire, Michèle Crèvecoeur, Leonardo Magneschi, Olivier Schaad, Michael Hippler, Martin C Jonikas, Sabeeha Merchant, Masato Nakai, Jean-David Rochaix, Peter Walter.

In photosynthetic eukaryotes, thousands of proteins are translated in the cytosol and imported into the chloroplast through the concerted action of two translocons-termed TOC and TIC-located in the outer and inner membranes of the chloroplast envelope, respectively. The degree to which the molecular composition of the TOC and TIC complexes is conserved over phylogenetic distances has remained controversial. Here, we combine transcriptomic, biochemical, and genetic tools in the green alga Chlamydomonas (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii) to demonstrate that, despite a lack of evident sequence conservation for some of its components, the algal TIC complex mirrors the molecular composition of a TIC complex from Arabidopsis thaliana. The Chlamydomonas TIC complex contains three nuclear-encoded subunits, Tic20, Tic56, and Tic100, and one chloroplast-encoded subunit, Tic214, and interacts with the TOC complex, as well as with several uncharacterized proteins to form a stable supercomplex (TIC-TOC), indicating that protein import across both envelope membranes is mechanistically coupled. Expression of the nuclear and chloroplast genes encoding both known and uncharacterized TIC-TOC components is highly coordinated, suggesting that a mechanism for regulating its biogenesis across compartmental boundaries must exist. Conditional repression of Tic214, the only chloroplast-encoded subunit in the TIC-TOC complex, impairs the import of chloroplast proteins with essential roles in chloroplast ribosome biogenesis and protein folding and induces a pleiotropic stress response, including several proteins involved in the chloroplast unfolded protein response. These findings underscore the functional importance of the TIC-TOC supercomplex in maintaining chloroplast proteostasis.

Keywords: Chlamydomonas reinhardtii; chloroplast gene targeting; chloroplast protein import; gene coexpression

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2014294117

Nat Commun. 2020 12 03. 11(1): 6191

Docking of acetyl-CoA carboxylase to the plastid envelope membrane attenuates fatty acid production in plants.

Yajin Ye, Krisztina Nikovics, Alexandra To, Loïc Lepiniec, Eric T Fedosejevs, Steven R Van Doren, Sébastien Baud, Jay J Thelen.

In plants, light-dependent activation of de novo fatty acid synthesis (FAS) is partially mediated by acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACCase), the first committed step for this pathway. However, it is not fully understood how plants control light-dependent FAS regulation to meet the cellular demand for acyl chains. We report here the identification of a gene family encoding for three small plastidial proteins of the envelope membrane that interact with the α-carboxyltransferase (α-CT) subunit of ACCase and participate in an original mechanism restraining FAS in the light. Light enhances the interaction between carboxyltransferase interactors (CTIs) and α-CT, which in turn attenuates carbon flux into FAS. Knockouts for CTI exhibit higher rates of FAS and marked increase in absolute triacylglycerol levels in leaves, more than 4-fold higher than in wild-type plants. Furthermore, WRINKLED1, a master transcriptional regulator of FAS, positively regulates CTI1 expression by direct binding to its promoter. This study reveals that in addition to light-dependent activation, "envelope docking" of ACCase permits fine-tuning of fatty acid supply during the plant life cycle.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20014-5