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Absence of warmth permits epigenetic memory of winter in Arabidopsis

Hepworth, Jo ; Antoniou-Kourounioti, Rea L. ; Bloomer, Rebecca H. ; Selga, Catja ; Berggren, Kristina LU ; Cox, Deborah ; Collier Harris, Barley R. ; Irwin, Judith A. ; Holm, Svante and Säll, Torbjörn LU , et al. (2018) In Nature Communications 9(1).
Abstract

Plants integrate widely fluctuating temperatures to monitor seasonal progression. Here, we investigate the temperature signals in field conditions that result in vernalisation, the mechanism by which flowering is aligned with spring. We find that multiple, distinct aspects of the temperature profile contribute to vernalisation. In autumn, transient cold temperatures promote transcriptional shutdown of Arabidopsis FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC), independently of factors conferring epigenetic memory. As winter continues, expression of VERNALIZATION INSENSITIVE3 (VIN3), a factor needed for epigenetic silencing, is upregulated by at least two independent thermosensory processes. One integrates long-term cold temperatures, while the other requires... (More)

Plants integrate widely fluctuating temperatures to monitor seasonal progression. Here, we investigate the temperature signals in field conditions that result in vernalisation, the mechanism by which flowering is aligned with spring. We find that multiple, distinct aspects of the temperature profile contribute to vernalisation. In autumn, transient cold temperatures promote transcriptional shutdown of Arabidopsis FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC), independently of factors conferring epigenetic memory. As winter continues, expression of VERNALIZATION INSENSITIVE3 (VIN3), a factor needed for epigenetic silencing, is upregulated by at least two independent thermosensory processes. One integrates long-term cold temperatures, while the other requires the absence of daily temperatures above 15 °C. The lack of spikes of high temperature, not just prolonged cold, is thus the major driver for vernalisation. Monitoring of peak daily temperature is an effective mechanism to judge seasonal progression, but is likely to have deleterious consequences for vernalisation as the climate becomes more variable.

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type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Nature Communications
volume
9
issue
1
article number
639
publisher
Nature Publishing Group
external identifiers
  • pmid:29434233
  • scopus:85042029461
ISSN
2041-1723
DOI
10.1038/s41467-018-03065-7
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
c22f3b49-98a7-4f7e-a15c-94fc677b15b7
date added to LUP
2018-03-05 07:25:14
date last changed
2024-03-01 15:01:33
@article{c22f3b49-98a7-4f7e-a15c-94fc677b15b7,
  abstract     = {{<p>Plants integrate widely fluctuating temperatures to monitor seasonal progression. Here, we investigate the temperature signals in field conditions that result in vernalisation, the mechanism by which flowering is aligned with spring. We find that multiple, distinct aspects of the temperature profile contribute to vernalisation. In autumn, transient cold temperatures promote transcriptional shutdown of Arabidopsis FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC), independently of factors conferring epigenetic memory. As winter continues, expression of VERNALIZATION INSENSITIVE3 (VIN3), a factor needed for epigenetic silencing, is upregulated by at least two independent thermosensory processes. One integrates long-term cold temperatures, while the other requires the absence of daily temperatures above 15 °C. The lack of spikes of high temperature, not just prolonged cold, is thus the major driver for vernalisation. Monitoring of peak daily temperature is an effective mechanism to judge seasonal progression, but is likely to have deleterious consequences for vernalisation as the climate becomes more variable.</p>}},
  author       = {{Hepworth, Jo and Antoniou-Kourounioti, Rea L. and Bloomer, Rebecca H. and Selga, Catja and Berggren, Kristina and Cox, Deborah and Collier Harris, Barley R. and Irwin, Judith A. and Holm, Svante and Säll, Torbjörn and Howard, Martin and Dean, Caroline}},
  issn         = {{2041-1723}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{12}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{Nature Publishing Group}},
  series       = {{Nature Communications}},
  title        = {{Absence of warmth permits epigenetic memory of winter in Arabidopsis}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-03065-7}},
  doi          = {{10.1038/s41467-018-03065-7}},
  volume       = {{9}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}