Special Focus Issue: Plant Epigenetics
The May Special Focus Issue of PCP ( Vol.53 Issue 5 ) provides a fascinating insight into the dynamic field of plant epigenetics research. The issue is guest edited by T. Kinoshita, arranged by Y. Tamada and H. Saze. Click article titles to read for free.
Opening the Door to Epigenetics in PCP
Tetsu Kinoshita and Steven E. Jacobsen
A general overview on the status of epigenetic research in plants and summary of the featured articles presented in this issue, which collectively highlight the fundamental impact of epigenetic regulation on plant growth and development.
Editor's Choice: DNA Methylation in Plants: Relationship to Small RNAs and Histone Modifications, and Functions in Transposon Inactivation Hidetoshi Saze, Kazuo Tsugane, Tatsuo Kanno and Taisuke Nishimura
This comprehensive review explores the latest evidence for DNA methylation in regulating gene expression in response to environmental stimuli, and the part played by epigenetic factors in directing methylation marks to chromatin and DNA.
FLC : A Hidden Polycomb Response Element Shows Up in Silence
Diana Mihaela Buzas, Yosuke Tamada and Tetsuya Kurata
Examination of flowering locus C (FLC) organisation reveals a functional PRE composed of three modules that are uniquely involved in PcG and TRX binding, and subsequently influence the transcriptional state of FLC .
An Epigenetic Integrator: New Insights into Genome Regulation, Environmental Stress Responses and Developmental Controls by HISTONE DEACETYLASE 6
Jong-Myong Kim, Taiko Kim To and Motoaki Seki
HDA6 is a major regulator of gene silencing in plants and is the focus of this mini-review, which explores how HDA6 acts synergistically with DNA methylation to maintain genome stability, and regulate plant growth and response to stress.
Stress-Induced Chromatin Changes: A Critical View on Their Heritability
Ales Pecinka and Ortrun Mittelsten Scheid
A range of stress- induced epigenetic changes are known to occur in plants though the authors of this review argue that their transgenerational effects or heritability remain inconclusive and as such require more stringent testing criteria.
Plant Imprinted Genes Identified by Genome-wide Approaches and Their Regulatory Mechanisms
Yoko Ikeda
Next generation sequencing in plants has identified a large number of common and species-specific imprinted gene sequences, which are providing novel insight into the significance of imprinting and its mechanism(s) of regulation.
Epigenetic Reprogramming in Plant Reproductive Lineages
Jose F. Gutierrez-Marcos and Hugh G. Dickinson
Male and female lineages undergo dramatic epigenetic changes during reproductive development, which are regulated by small non-coding RNAs and set them apart to make way for the new generation in plants.
The effects of heat induction and the siRNA biogenesis pathway on the transgenerational transposition of ONSEN, a copia-like retrotransposon in Arabidopsis thaliana
Wataru Matsunaga, Akie Kobayashi, Atsushi Kato and Hidetaka Ito
Exposure to heat stress across several generations is able to induce transposition of the Arabidopsis copia -like retroelement, ONSEN, which is regulated in a redundant fashion by DICER-like proteins.
ARABIDOPSIS TRITHORAX-RELATED3/SET DOMAIN GROUP2 is Required for the Winter-Annual Habit of Arabidopsis thaliana
Jae-Young Yun, Yosuke Tamada, Ye Eun Kang and Richard M. Amasino
ATX3/SDG2 acts as a transcriptional activator of FLC and related FLC clade genes, which is responsible for conferring the vernalization-requiring winter-annual growth habit in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Transition of Chromatin Status During the Process of Recovery from Drought Stress in Arabidopsis thaliana
Jong-Myong Kim, Taiko Kim To, Junko Ishida, Akihiro Matsui, Hiroshi Kimura and Motoaki Sek i
Drought-response gene activation is associated with RNA PolII activity and increased histone H3K9 acetylation and H3K4 trimethylation, whereas the reverse is observed upon rehydration -thus revealing the dynamic nature of the Arabidopsis epigenome in response to stress.
Activation and Epigenetic Regulation of DNA Transposon nDart1 in Rice
Chang-Ho Eun, Kyoko Takagi, Kyeung-Il Park, Masahiko Maekawa, Shigeru Iida and Kazuo Tsugane
Non-autonomous rice nDart1 transposons exhibit differing activities depending on genetic background, though activation of nDart1 transposition is usually associated with hypomethylation and high expression of aDart1 transposase activity.
To view full table of contents for this issue, visit this page.