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Control of vein-forming, striped gene expression by auxin signaling Krishna, Anmol; Gardiner, Jason; Donner, Tyler J.; Scarpella, Enrico

Abstract

Background Activation of gene expression in striped domains is a key building block of biological patterning, from the recursive formation of veins in plant leaves to that of ribs and vertebrae in our bodies. In animals, gene expression is activated in striped domains by the differential affinity of broadly expressed transcription factors for their target genes and the combinatorial interaction between such target genes. In plants, how gene expression is activated in striped domains is instead unknown. We address this question for the broadly expressed MONOPTEROS (MP) transcription factor and its target gene ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX FACTOR8 (ATHB8). Results We find that ATHB8 promotes vein formation and that such vein-forming function depends on both levels of ATHB8 expression and width of ATHB8 expression domains. We further find that ATHB8 expression is activated in striped domains by a combination of (1) activation of ATHB8 expression through binding of peak levels of MP to a low-affinity MP-binding site in the ATHB8 promoter and (2) repression of ATHB8 expression by MP target genes of the AUXIN/INDOLE-3-ACETIC-ACID-INDUCIBLE family. Conclusions Our findings suggest that a common regulatory logic controls activation of gene expression in striped domains in both plants and animals despite the independent evolution of their multicellularity.

Item Metadata

Title
Control of vein-forming, striped gene expression by auxin signaling
Creator
Krishna, Anmol; Gardiner, Jason; Donner, Tyler J.; Scarpella, Enrico
Publisher
BioMed Central
Date Issued
2021-09-24
Description
Background Activation of gene expression in striped domains is a key building block of biological patterning, from the recursive formation of veins in plant leaves to that of ribs and vertebrae in our bodies. In animals, gene expression is activated in striped domains by the differential affinity of broadly expressed transcription factors for their target genes and the combinatorial interaction between such target genes. In plants, how gene expression is activated in striped domains is instead unknown. We address this question for the broadly expressed MONOPTEROS (MP) transcription factor and its target gene ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX FACTOR8 (ATHB8). Results We find that ATHB8 promotes vein formation and that such vein-forming function depends on both levels of ATHB8 expression and width of ATHB8 expression domains. We further find that ATHB8 expression is activated in striped domains by a combination of (1) activation of ATHB8 expression through binding of peak levels of MP to a low-affinity MP-binding site in the ATHB8 promoter and (2) repression of ATHB8 expression by MP target genes of the AUXIN/INDOLE-3-ACETIC-ACID-INDUCIBLE family. Conclusions Our findings suggest that a common regulatory logic controls activation of gene expression in striped domains in both plants and animals despite the independent evolution of their multicellularity.
Subject
Stripe formation; Gene regulatory network; Arabidopsis thaliana; Auxin; Leaf vascular patterning; MONOPTEROS; ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA HOMEOBOX8; Incoherent feedforward loop; Vein network formation
Genre
Article
Type
Text
Language
eng
Date Available
2021-10-08
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
DOI
10.14288/1.0402484
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/79928
Affiliation
Science, Irving K. Barber Faculty of (Okanagan); Non UBC; Biology, Department of (Okanagan)
Citation
BMC Biology. 2021 Sep 24;19(1):213
Publisher DOI
10.1186/s12915-021-01143-9
Peer Review Status
Reviewed
Scholarly Level
Faculty
Copyright Holder
The Author(s)
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
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Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)