bioRxiv ScienceSearch

Biology subjects

Roudier, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Roudier, F..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

A network of transcriptional repressors mediates auxin response specificity

INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPHThe regulation of signalling capacity plays a pivotal role in setting developmental patterns in both plants and animals (1). The hormone auxin is a key signal for plant growth and development that acts through the AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR (ARF) transcription factors (2). A subset of these ARFs comprises transcriptional activators of target genes in response to auxin, and are essential for regulating auxin signalling throughout the plant lifecycle (3). While ARF activators show tissue-specific expression patterns, it is unknown how their expression patterns are established. Chromatin modifications and accessibility studies revealed the chromatin of loci encoding ARF activators is constitutively open for transcription. Using a high-throughput yeast one-hybrid (Y1H) approach, we discovered a network of transcriptional regulators of ARF activator genes from Arabidopsis thaliana. Expression analyses demonstrated that the majority of these regulators act as repressors of ARF transcription in planta. Our observations support a scenario where the default configuration of open chromatin enables a network of transcriptional repressors to shape the expression pattern of ARF activators and provide specificity in auxin signalling output throughout development.

plant biology

Chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing and RNA-sequencing for complex and low-abundance tree buds

Chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing (ChIP-seq) is a robust technique to study interactions between proteins, such as histones or transcription factors, and DNA. This technique in combination with RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) is a powerful tool to better understand biological processes in eukaryotes. We developed a combined ChIP-seq and RNA-seq protocol for tree buds (Prunus avium L., Prunus persica L Batch, Malus x domestica Borkh.) that has also been successfully tested on Arabidopsis thaliana and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Tree buds contain phenolic compounds that negatively interfere with ChIP and RNA extraction. In addition to solving this problem, our protocol is optimised to work on small amounts of material. Furthermore, one of the advantages of this protocol is that samples for ChIP-seq are cross-linked after flash freezing, making it possible to work on trees growing in the field and to perform ChIP-seq and RNA-seq on the same starting material. Focusing on dormant buds in sweet cherry, we explored the link between expression level and H3K4me3 enrichment for all genes, including a strong correlation between H3K4me3 enrichment at the DORMANCY-ASSOCIATED MADS-box 5 (PavDAM5) loci and its expression pattern. This protocol will allow analysis of chromatin and transcriptomic dynamics in tree buds, notably during its development and response to the environment.

plant biology