High temperature increases centromere-mediated genome elimination frequency and enhances haploid induction in Arabidopsis.

Double haploid production is the most effective way to create true-breeding lines in a single generation. In Arabidopsis, haploid induction via mutation of the centromere-specific histone H3 (cenH3) has been shown when the mutant is outcrossed to the wild-type, and the wild-type genome remains in the haploid progeny. However, factors that affect haploid induction are still poorly understood. Here, we report that a mutant of the cenH3 assembly factor Kinetochore Null2 (KNL2) can be used as a haploid inducer when pollinated by the wild-type. We discovered that short-term temperature stress of the knl2 mutant increased the efficiency of haploid induction 10-fold. We also demonstrated that a point mutation in the CENPC-k motif of KNL2 is sufficient to generate haploid-inducing lines, suggesting that haploid-inducing lines in crops can be identified in a naturally occurring or chemically induced mutant population, avoiding the generic modification (GM) approach at any stage. Furthermore, a cenh3-4 mutant functioned as a haploid inducer in response to short-term heat stress, even though it did not induce haploids under standard conditions. Thus, we identified KNL2 as a new target gene for the generation of haploid-inducer lines and showed that exposure of centromeric protein mutants to high temperature strongly increases their haploid induction efficiency.

Ordered changes in histone modifications at the core of the Arabidopsis circadian clock.

Circadian clock function in Arabidopsis thaliana relies on a complex network of reciprocal regulations among oscillator components. Here, we demonstrate that chromatin remodeling is a prevalent regulatory mechanism at the core of the clock. The peak-to-trough circadian oscillation is paralleled by the sequential accumulation of H3 acetylation (H3K56ac, K9ac), H3K4 trimethylation (H3K4me3), and H3K4me2. Inhibition of acetylation and H3K4me3 abolishes oscillator gene expression, indicating that both marks are essential for gene activation. Mechanistically, blocking H3K4me3 leads to increased clock-repressor binding, suggesting that H3K4me3 functions as a transition mark modulating the progression from activation to repression. The histone methyltransferase SET DOMAIN GROUP 2/ARABIDOPSIS TRITHORAX RELATED 3 (SDG2/ATXR3) might contribute directly or indirectly to this regulation because oscillator gene expression, H3K4me3 accumulation, and repressor binding are altered in plants misexpressing SDG2/ATXR3. Despite divergences in oscillator components, a chromatin-dependent mechanism of clock gene activation appears to be common to both plant and mammal circadian systems.

Paramutation of tobacco transgenes by small RNA-mediated transcriptional gene silencing.

It has been well established that trans-acting small RNAs guide promoter methylation leading to its inactivation and gene silencing at the transcriptional level (TGS). Here we addressed the question of the influence of the locus structure and epigenetic modifications of the target locus on its susceptibility for being paramutated by trans-acting small RNA molecules. Silencing was induced by crossing a 35S promoter silencer locus 271 with two different 35S-driven transgene loci, locus 2 containing a highly expressed single copy gene and locus 1 containing an inverted posttranscriptionally silenced (PTGS) repeat of this gene. Three generations of exposure to RNA signals from the 271 locus were required to complete silencing and methylation of the 35S promoter within locus 2. Segregating methylated locus 2 epialleles were obtained only from the third generation of hybrids, and this methylation was not correlated with silencing. Strikingly, only one generation was required for the PTGS locus 1 to acquire complete TGS and 35S promoter methylation. In this case, paramutated locus 1 epialleles bearing methylated and inactive 35S promoters segregated already from the first generation of hybrids. The results support the hypothesis that PTGS loci containing a palindrome structure and methylation in the coding region are more sensitive to paramutation by small RNAs and exhibit a strong tendency to formation of meiotically transmissible TGS epialleles. These features contrast with a non-methylated single copy transgenic locus that required several generations of contact with RNA silencing molecules to become imprinted in a stable epiallele.