Biology subjects

Arias, L. A.

Publications and source records attributed to Arias, L. A..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

The DC1 domain protein Vacuoleless Gametophytes positively regulates salt stress tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana

Vacuoleless Gametophytes (VLG) is a DC1 domain-containing protein initially characterized as essential for the development of both female and male gametophytes in Arabidopsis thaliana. In addition, VLG regulates stamen development through the involvement in lignin and jasmonic acid biosynthesis pathways. In this work, we report that VLG is also involved in salt stress tolerance in A. thaliana. Under salt stress, VLG-knock-down plants exhibited reduced germination, root elongation, biomass accumulation, photosynthetic pigment content, along with diminished expression of key salt-responsive genes. Conversely, these plants accumulated higher anthocyanins, and reactive oxygen species (H2O2 and O2-) compared to wilt type, indicating impaired oxidative stress control. In contrast, VLG-overexpressing plants showed a salt stress resistant phenotype with enhanced biomass and increased expression of salt-responsive genes under saline conditions. Together, these findings uncover an unexpected role for VLG as a positive regulator of salt tolerance, expanding the functional scope of DC1 domain proteins beyond reproductive development and providing new insights into plant mechanisms of abiotic stress resilience.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2024

The DC1 domain protein Vacuoleless Gametophytes regulates stamen development in Arabidopsis

Vacuoleless Gametophytes (VLG) is a DC1 domain protein that was initially characterized as essential for early female and male gametophytes development in Arabidopsis. However, VLG expression was also detected in stamens, pistils and other sporophytic tissues, implying a broader role for this protein. As homozygous insertional VLG lines resulted unviable, we generated Arabidopsis amiRNA VLG knock-down plants to study the role of VLG in sporophyte development. The phenotypic characterization of VLG knock-down plants showed reduced seed set and indehiscent anthers with shorter filaments and stigma exsertion. Moreover, amiRNA VLG knock-down plants displayed unbroken stomia and septa, markedly reduced endothecium lignification, diminished ROS accumulation, and lower transcript levels of genes involved in jasmonic acid and lignin biosynthesis. The indehiscent phenotype was rescued by exogenous application of either jasmonic acid or H2O2. Altogether, our results suggest that VLG is involved in lignin and jasmonic acid biosynthesis pathways, and that proper levels of VLG are required in the process that leads to stomium breakage and anther dehiscence. Our findings shed light on the mechanisms underlying stamen development and provide new insights into the roles of a DC1 domain protein in plant reproduction. Key MessageVacuoleless Gametophytes participates in anther dehiscence through a process that involves JA, ROS and lignin accumulation.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Proteomic Analysis Reveals the Molecular Pathways Responsible for Solar UV-B Acclimation in High-altitude Malbec Berries

Grapevine cultivation at high altitudes provides a viable option for producing premium quality wines in the context of climate change. This is primarily attributed to cooler temperatures, wider thermal amplitudes, and increased UV-B radiation. Although high UV-B levels can cause oxidative-stress, grape berries acclimate by generating UV-blocking anthocyanins and antioxidant compounds accumulated in the berry skins, thereby enhancing the organoleptic qualities and aging capacity of wine. This UV-B exclusion study examines how Malbec berries respond to solar UV-B at a high-altitude vineyard in Mendoza, Argentina (1350 m a.s.l.). The results showed that high solar UV-B acts both as a photomorphogenic signal and a stressor. The proteomic changes of berries exposed to +UV-B conditions indicate a decrease of photosynthesis and oxidative phosphorylation, coupled with an increase of glycolysis and tricarboxylic acid cycle as compensatory respiration pathways. Furthermore, numerous chaperones and proteins associated with the antioxidant system exhibited increased abundance to maintain cellular homeostasis. Lastly, veraison-stage berries exposed to +UV-B displayed an activation of the UVR8 signaling cascade and the phenylpropanoid pathway, resulting in higher concentration of phenolic compounds and more oxidation-resistant types of anthocyanins. This is the first report of field-grown grape berry proteomic modulation in response to solar UV-B, and it may have significant implications for the cultivation of high-quality wine grapes in both current and future climate scenarios. Significance

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2022

The DC1 domain protein BINUCLEATE POLLEN is required for pollen development in Arabidopsis

Development of the male gametophyte is a tightly regulated process that requires precise control of cell division and gene expression. A relevant aspect to understand the events underlying pollen development regulation constitutes the identification and characterization of the genes required for this process. In this work we showed that the DC1 domain protein BINUCLEATE POLLEN (BNP) is essential for pollen development and germination. Pollen grains carrying the defective BNP allele failed to complete mitosis II and are impaired in pollen germination. By yeast two-hybrid analysis and bimolecular fluorescence complementation assays, we identified a set of BNP-interacting proteins. Among confirmed interactors we found NAC family transcriptional regulators Vascular Plant One-Zinc Finger 1 (VOZ1) and VOZ2. VOZ1 localization changes during pollen development, moving to the vegetative nucleus at the tricellular stage. We observed that this relocalization requires BNP, as in the absence of BNP in pollen from bnp/BNP plants, VOZ1 nuclear localization is impaired. As voz1voz2 double mutants showed the same developmental defect observed in bnp pollen grains, we propose that BNP requirement to complete microgametogenesis could be linked to its interaction with VOZ1/2 proteins. BNP could have a role of scaffold protein, recruiting VOZ1/2 to the endosomal system into assemblies that are required for their further translocation to the nucleus, where they act as transcriptional regulators. O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=180 SRC="FIGDIR/small/484815v3_fig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (67K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@8680b0org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@6ac6fcorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@2ddf1eorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@193693c_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG O_FLOATNOFigure 1.C_FLOATNO BNP codes for a DC1 domain containing protein. (A) Schematic view of a region of Arabidopsis chromosome 2 (from 18,323,538 to 18,321,537 bp -TAIR10) showing BNP genomic location and bnp-1 and bnp-2 insertion sites. (B) BNP amino acid sequence with boxed DC1 domains. (C) Phylogenic tree of 140 DC1 domain containing proteins in Arabidopsis. Bootstrap test results (1000 replicates) of the major nodes are indicated. IDs of sequences grouped in clusters I to VIII are listed. (D) Alignment of BNP with its closest Arabidopsis homologs and CaDC1 (AEI52549), TaCHP (ACU80555), NtDC1a (BAF80452) and NtDC1b (BAF80453). Phylogenic tree with bootstrap test results (1000 replicates) for the alignment of the complete 18 sequences is shown. Amino acid region represented for each sequence is indicated. DC1 domains are framed, signature residues and binding loop regions are indicated (C=Cys, H=His, = loop). Higher intensity in grey scale denotes higher sequence similarity. C_FIG

plant biology↗