bims-plasge 2021-10-24 papers

Issue of 2021–10–24
four papers selected by
Vera S. Bogdanova, ИЦиГ СО РАН

Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Oct 19. pii: 11274. [Epub ahead of print]22(20):

Functions of PPR Proteins in Plant Growth and Development.

Xiulan Li, Mengdi Sun, Shijuan Liu, Qian Teng, Shihui Li, Yueshui Jiang.

Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins form a large protein family in land plants, with hundreds of different members in angiosperms. In the last decade, a number of studies have shown that PPR proteins are sequence-specific RNA-binding proteins involved in multiple aspects of plant organellar RNA processing, and perform numerous functions in plants throughout their life cycle. Recently, computational and structural studies have provided new insights into the working mechanisms of PPR proteins in RNA recognition and cytidine deamination. In this review, we summarized the research progress on the functions of PPR proteins in plant growth and development, with a particular focus on their effects on cytoplasmic male sterility, stress responses, and seed development. We also documented the molecular mechanisms of PPR proteins in mediating RNA processing in plant mitochondria and chloroplasts.

Keywords: PPR protein; RNA editing; RNA splicing; cytoplasmic male sterility; seed development

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms222011274

Plants (Basel). 2021 Sep 30. pii: 2062. [Epub ahead of print]10(10):

Genetic Mapping of the HLA1 Locus Causing Hybrid Lethality in Nicotiana Interspecific Hybrids.

Takahiro Tezuka, Naoto Kitamura, Sae Imagawa, Akira Hasegawa, Kumpei Shiragaki, Hai He, Masanori Yanase, Yoshiyuki Ogata, Toshinobu Morikawa, Shuji Yokoi.

Hybrid lethality, a postzygotic mechanism of reproductive isolation, is a phenomenon that causes the death of F1 hybrid seedlings. Hybrid lethality is generally caused by the epistatic interaction of two or more loci. In the genus Nicotiana, N. debneyi has the dominant allele Hla1-1 at the HLA1 locus that causes hybrid lethality in F1 hybrid seedlings by interaction with N. tabacum allele(s). Here, we mapped the HLA1 locus using the F2 population segregating for the Hla1-1 allele derived from the interspecific cross between N. debneyi and N. fragrans. To map HLA1, several DNA markers including random amplified polymorphic DNA, amplified fragment length polymorphism, and simple sequence repeat markers, were used. Additionally, DNA markers were developed based on disease resistance gene homologs identified from the genome sequence of N. benthamiana. Linkage analysis revealed that HLA1 was located between two cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence markers Nb14-CAPS and NbRGH1-CAPS at a distance of 10.8 and 10.9 cM, respectively. The distance between these markers was equivalent to a 682 kb interval in the genome sequence of N. benthamiana.

Keywords: Nicotiana debneyi; Nicotiana fragrans; hybrid lethality; interspecific population; linkage analysis; reproductive isolation

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10102062

Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Oct 16. pii: 11162. [Epub ahead of print]22(20):

PPR647 Protein Is Required for Chloroplast RNA Editing, Splicing and Chloroplast Development in Maize.

Yan Zhao, Wei Xu, Yongzhong Zhang, Shilei Sun, Lijing Wang, Shiyi Zhong, Xiangyu Zhao, Baoshen Liu.

Chloroplasts play an essential role in plant growth and development. Any factors affecting chloroplast development will lead to abnormal plant growth. Here, we characterized a new maize mutant, albino seedling mutant 81647 (as-81647), which exhibits an entirely albino phenotype in leaves and eventually died before the three-leaf stage. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) demonstrated that the chloroplast thylakoid membrane was impaired and the granum lamellae significantly decreased in as-81647. Map-based cloning and transgenic analysis confirmed that PPR647 encodes a new chloroplast protein consisting of 11 pentratricopeptide repeat domains. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) assays and transcriptome analysis (RNA-seq) showed that the PPR647 mutation significantly disrupted the expression of PEP-dependent plastid genes. In addition, RNA splicing and RNA editing of multiple chloroplast genes showed severe defects in as-81647. These results indicated that PPR647 is crucial for RNA editing, RNA splicing of chloroplast genes, and plays an essential role in chloroplast development.

Keywords: RNA editing; RNA splicing; albino-lethal; chloroplast; maize; pentatricopeptide repeat protein

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms222011162

Front Genet. 2021 ;12 757109

RNA Editing and Its Roles in Plant Organelles.

Wei Hao, Guoxiang Liu, Weipeng Wang, Wei Shen, Yuping Zhao, Jialiang Sun, Qiuyue Yang, Yaxin Zhang, Wenjia Fan, Shuaishuai Pei, Zhuanqing Chen, Dongbei Xu, Tengfei Qin.

RNA editing, a vital supplement to the central dogma, yields genetic information on RNA products that are different from their DNA templates. The conversion of C-to-U in mitochondria and plastids is the main kind of RNA editing in plants. Various factors have been demonstrated to be involved in RNA editing. In this minireview, we summarized the factors and mechanisms involved in RNA editing in plant organelles. Recently, the rapid development of deep sequencing has revealed many RNA editing events in plant organelles, and we further reviewed these events identified through deep sequencing data. Numerous studies have shown that RNA editing plays essential roles in diverse processes, such as the biogenesis of chloroplasts and mitochondria, seed development, and stress and hormone responses. Finally, we discussed the functions of RNA editing in plant organelles.

Keywords: RNA editing; deep sequencing; factors; mechanism; plant organelles

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2021.757109