Transcriptome changes in grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) cv. Malbec leaves induced by ultraviolet-B radiation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280-315 nm) is a natural component of sunlight, which has numerous regulatory effects on plant physiology. The nature of the response to UV-B is dependent on fluence rate, dose, duration and wavelength of the UV-B treatment. Some reports have analyzed the changes in gene expression caused by UV-B light on several plant species using microarray technology. However, there is no information on the transcriptome response triggered by UV-B in grapevine. In this paper we investigate the gene expression responses of leaves from <it>in vitro </it>cultured <it>Vitis vinifera </it>cv. Malbec plants subjected to the same dose of biologically effective UV-B radiation (4.75 kJ m^-2d^-1) administered at two different fluence rates (16 h at ≅ 8.25 μW cm^-2, 4 h at ≅ 33 μW cm^-2) using a new custom made GrapeGen Affymetrix GeneChip^®.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The number of genes modulated by high fluence rate UV-B doubled the number of genes modulated by low fluence UV-B. Their functional analyses revealed several functional categories commonly regulated by both UV-B treatments as well as categories more specifically modulated depending on UV-B fluence rate. General protective responses, namely the induction of pathways regulating synthesis of UV-B absorbing compounds such as the Phenylpropanoid pathway, the induction of different antioxidant defense systems and the activation of pathways commonly associated with pathogen defense and abiotic stress responses seem to play critical roles in grapevine responses against UV-B radiation. Furthermore, high fluence rate UV-B seemed to specifically modulate additional pathways and processes in order to protect grapevine plantlets against UV-B-induced oxidative stress, stop the cell cycle progression, and control protein degradation. On the other hand, low fluence rate UV-B regulated the expression of specific responses in the metabolism of auxin and abscisic acid as well as in the modification of cell walls that could be involved in UV-B acclimation-like processes.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results show the UV-B radiation effects on the leaf transcriptome of grapevine (<it>Vitis vinifera </it>cv. Malbec) plantlets. Functional categories commonly modulated under both UV-B treatments as well as transcripts specifically regulated in an UV-B-intensity dependent way were identified. While high fluence rate UV-B had regulatory effects mainly on defense or general multiple-stress responses pathways, low fluence rate UV-B promoted the expression of genes that could be involved in UV-B protection or the amelioration of the UV-B-induced damage. This study also provides an extensive list of genes regulating multiple metabolic pathways involved in the response of grapevine to UV-B that can be used for future researches.</p

Comparative Analysis of Grapevine Whole-genome Gene Predictions, Functional Annotation, Categorization and Integration of the Predicted Gene Sequences

Background: The first draft assembly and gene prediction of the grapevine genome (8X base coverage) was made available to the scientific community in 2007, and functional annotation was developed on this gene prediction. Since then additional Sanger sequences were added to the 8X sequences pool and a new version of the genomic sequence with superior base coverage (12X) was produced. Results: In order to more efficiently annotate the function of the genes predicted in the new assembly, it is important to build on as much of the previous work as possible, by transferring 8X annotation of the genome to the 12X version. The 8X and 12X assemblies and gene predictions of the grapevine genome were compared to answer the question, “Can we uniquely map 8X predicted genes to 12X predicted genes?” The results show that while the assemblies and gene structure predictions are too different to make a complete mapping between them, most genes (18,725) showed a one-to-one relationship between 8X predicted genes and the last version of 12X predicted genes. In addition, reshuffled genomic sequence structures appeared. These highlight regions of the genome where the gene predictions need to be taken with caution. Based on the new grapevine gene functional annotation and in-depth functional categorization, twenty eight new molecular networks have been created for VitisNet while the existing networks were updated. Conclusions: The outcomes of this study provide a functional annotation of the 12X genes, an update of VitisNet, the system of the grapevine molecular networks, and a new functional categorization of genes

Palaeogenomic insights into the origins of French grapevine diversity

Ramos-Madrigal, Jazmín, Runge, Anne Kathrine Wiborg, Bouby, Laurent, Lacombe, Thierry, Castruita, José Alfredo Samaniego, Adam-Blondon, Anne-Françoise, Figueiral, Isabel, Hallavant, Charlotte, Martínez-Zapater, José M., Schaal, Caroline, Töpfer, Reinhard, Petersen, Bent, Sicheritz-Pontén, Thomas, This, Patrice, Bacilieri, Roberto, Gilbert, M. Thomas P., Wales, Nathan (2019): Palaeogenomic insights into the origins of French grapevine diversity. Nature Plants 5: 595-603, DOI: 10.1038/s41477-019-0437-

Chromatin remodeling in plant development

Plant development results from specific patterns of gene expression that are tightly regulated in a spatio-temporal manner. Chromatin remodeling plays a central role in establishing these expression patterns and maintaining epigenetic transcriptional states through successive rounds of mitosis that take place within a cell lineage. Plant epigenetic switches occur not only at the embryo stage, but also during postembryonic developmental transitions, suggesting that chromatin remodeling activities in plants can provide a higher degree of regulatory flexibility which probably underlies their developmental plasticity. Here, we highlight recent progress in the understanding of plant chromatin dynamic organization, facilitating the activation or repression of specific sets of genes involved in different developmental programs and integrating them with the response to environmental signals. Chromatin conformation controls gene expression both in actively dividing undifferentiated cells and in those already fate-determined. In this context, we first describe chromatin reorganization activities required to maintain meristem function stable through DNA replication and cell division. Organ initiation at the apex, with emphasis on reproductive development, is next discussed to uncover the chromatin events involved in the establishment and maintenance of expression patterns associated with differentiating cells; this is illustrated with the complex epigenetic regulation of the Arabidopsis floral repressor FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC). Finally, we discuss the involvement of chromatin remodeling in plant responses to environmental cues and to different types of stress conditions. © 2009 UBC Press

Effect of Light Quality and Vernalization on Late-Flowering Mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana

We have analyzed the response to vernalization and light quality of six classes of late-flowering mutants (fb, fca, fe, fg, ft, and fy) previously isolated following mutagenesis of the early Landsberg race of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. When grown in continuous fluorescent illumination, four mutants (fca, fe, ft, and fy) and the Landsberg wild type exhibited a reduction in both flowering time and leaf number following 6 weeks of vernalization. A significant decrease in flowering time was also observed for all the mutants and the wild type when constant fluorescent illumination was supplemented with irradiation enriched in the red and far red regions of the spectrum. In the most extreme case, the late-flowering phenotype of the fca mutant was completely suppressed by vernalization, suggesting that this mutation has a direct effect on flowering. The fe and fy mutants also showed a more pronounced response than wild type to both vernalization and incandescent supplementation. The ft mutant showed a similar response to that of the wild type. The fb and fg mutants were substantially less sensitive to these treatments. These results are interpreted in the context of a multifactorial pathway for induction of flowering, in which the various mutations affect different steps of the pathway