1
|
Kuya N, Nishijima R, Kitomi Y, Kawakatsu T, Uga Y. Transcriptome profiles of rice roots under simulated microgravity conditions and following gravistimulation. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1193042. [PMID: 37360733 PMCID: PMC10288856 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1193042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Root system architecture affects the efficient uptake of water and nutrients in plants. The root growth angle, which is a critical component in determining root system architecture, is affected by root gravitropism; however, the mechanism of root gravitropism in rice remains largely unknown. In this study, we conducted a time-course transcriptome analysis of rice roots under conditions of simulated microgravity using a three-dimensional clinostat and following gravistimulation to detect candidate genes associated with the gravitropic response. We found that HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN (HSP) genes, which are involved in the regulation of auxin transport, were preferentially up-regulated during simulated microgravity conditions and rapidly down-regulated by gravistimulation. We also found that the transcription factor HEAT STRESS TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR A2s (HSFA2s) and HSFB2s, showed the similar expression patterns with the HSPs. A co-expression network analysis and an in silico motif search within the upstream regions of the co-expressed genes revealed possible transcriptional control of HSPs by HSFs. Because HSFA2s are transcriptional activators, whereas HSFB2s are transcriptional repressors, the results suggest that the gene regulatory networks governed by HSFs modulate the gravitropic response through transcriptional control of HSPs in rice roots.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Noriyuki Kuya
- Institute of Crop Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Ryo Nishijima
- Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Yuka Kitomi
- Institute of Crop Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Taiji Kawakatsu
- Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Yusaku Uga
- Institute of Crop Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Tsukuba, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Baba AI, Mir MY, Riyazuddin R, Cséplő Á, Rigó G, Fehér A. Plants in Microgravity: Molecular and Technological Perspectives. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms231810548. [PMID: 36142459 PMCID: PMC9505700 DOI: 10.3390/ijms231810548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2022] [Revised: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Plants are vital components of our ecosystem for a balanced life here on Earth, as a source of both food and oxygen for survival. Recent space exploration has extended the field of plant biology, allowing for future studies on life support farming on distant planets. This exploration will utilize life support technologies for long-term human space flights and settlements. Such longer space missions will depend on the supply of clean air, food, and proper waste management. The ubiquitous force of gravity is known to impact plant growth and development. Despite this, we still have limited knowledge about how plants can sense and adapt to microgravity in space. Thus, the ability of plants to survive in microgravity in space settings becomes an intriguing topic to be investigated in detail. The new knowledge could be applied to provide food for astronaut missions to space and could also teach us more about how plants can adapt to unique environments. Here, we briefly review and discuss the current knowledge about plant gravity-sensing mechanisms and the experimental possibilities to research microgravity-effects on plants either on the Earth or in orbit.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abu Imran Baba
- Umeå Plant Science Centre, Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden
- Correspondence: or
| | - Mohd Yaqub Mir
- Doctoral School of Neuroscience, Semmelweis University, H-1083 Budapest, Hungary
- Theoretical Neuroscience and Complex Systems Group, Department of Computational Sciences, Wigner Research Centre for Physics, H-1121 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Riyazuddin Riyazuddin
- Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged, Közép fasor 52, H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
- Biological Research Centre (BRC), Institute of Plant Biology, Eötvös Loránd Research Network (ELKH), H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Ágnes Cséplő
- Biological Research Centre (BRC), Institute of Plant Biology, Eötvös Loránd Research Network (ELKH), H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Gábor Rigó
- Biological Research Centre (BRC), Institute of Plant Biology, Eötvös Loránd Research Network (ELKH), H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Attila Fehér
- Department of Plant Biology, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged, Közép fasor 52, H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
- Biological Research Centre (BRC), Institute of Plant Biology, Eötvös Loránd Research Network (ELKH), H-6726 Szeged, Hungary
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Abstract
The growth and development of plants during spaceflight have important implications for both basic and applied research supported by NASA and other international space agencies. While there have been many reviews of plant space biology, this chapter attempts to fill a gap in the literature on the actual process and methods of performing plant research in the spaceflight environment. One of the authors (JZK) has been a principal investigator on eight spaceflight projects. These experiences include using the U.S. Space Shuttle, the former Russian Space Station Mir, and the International Space Station, utilizing the Space Shuttle and Space X as launch vehicles. While there are several ways to fly an experiment into space and to obtain a spaceflight opportunity, this review focuses on using the NASA peer-reviewed sciences approach to get an experiment manifested for flight. Three narratives for the implementation of plant space biology experiments are considered from rapid turn around of a few months to a project with new hardware development that lasted 6 years. The many challenges of spaceflight research include logistical and resource constraints such as crew time, power, cold stowage, data downlinks, among others. Additional issues considered are working at NASA centers, hardware development, safety concerns, and the engineering versus science culture in space agencies. The difficulties of publishing the results from spaceflight research based on such factors as the lack of controls, limited sample size, and the indirect effects of the spaceflight environment also are summarized. Lessons learned from these spaceflight experiences are discussed in the context of improvements for future space-based research projects with plants. We also will consider new opportunities for Moon-based research via NASA's Artemis lunar exploration program.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tatsiana Shymanovich
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA
| | - John Z Kiss
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Uncovering Transcriptional Responses to Fractional Gravity in Arabidopsis Roots. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:life11101010. [PMID: 34685382 PMCID: PMC8539686 DOI: 10.3390/life11101010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2021] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Although many reports characterize the transcriptional response of Arabidopsis seedlings to microgravity, few investigate the effect of partial or fractional gravity on gene expression. Understanding plant responses to fractional gravity is relevant for plant growth on lunar and Martian surfaces. The plant signaling flight experiment utilized the European Modular Cultivation System (EMCS) onboard the International Space Station (ISS). The EMCS consisted of two rotors within a controlled chamber allowing for two experimental conditions, microgravity (stationary rotor) and simulated gravity in space. Seedlings were grown for 5 days under continuous light in seed cassettes. The arrangement of the seed cassettes within each experimental container results in a gradient of fractional g (in the spinning rotor). To investigate whether gene expression patterns are sensitive to fractional g, we carried out transcriptional profiling of root samples exposed to microgravity or partial g (ranging from 0.53 to 0.88 g). Data were analyzed using DESeq2 with fractional g as a continuous variable in the design model in order to query gene expression across the gravity continuum. We identified a subset of genes whose expression correlates with changes in fractional g. Interestingly, the most responsive genes include those encoding transcription factors, defense, and cell wall-related proteins and heat shock proteins.
Collapse
|
5
|
Kitto RZ, Dhillon Y, Bevington J, Horne M, Giegé P, Drouard L, Heintz D, Villette C, Corre N, Arrivé M, Manefield MJ, Bowman R, Favier JJ, Osborne B, Welch C, McKay CP, Hammond MC. Synthetic biological circuit tested in spaceflight. LIFE SCIENCES IN SPACE RESEARCH 2021; 28:57-65. [PMID: 33612180 DOI: 10.1016/j.lssr.2020.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Revised: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Synthetic biology has potential spaceflight applications yet few if any studies have attempted to translate Earth-based synthetic biology tools into spaceflight. An exogenously inducible biological circuit for protein production in Arabidopsis thaliana, pX7-AtPDSi (Guo et al. 2003), was flown to ISS and functionally investigated. Seedlings were grown in a custom built 1.25 U plant greenhouse. Images recorded during the experiment show that leaves of pX7-AtPDSi seedlings photobleached as designed while wild type Col-0 leaves did not, which reveals that the synthetic circuit led to protein production during spaceflight. Polymerase chain reaction analysis post-flight also confirms that the Cre/LoxP (recombination system) portions of the circuit were functional in spaceflight. The subcomponents of the biological circuit, estrogen-responsive transcription factor XVE, Cre/LoxP DNA recombination system, and RNAi post-transcriptional gene silencing system now have flight heritage and can be incorporated in future designs for space applications. To facilitate future plant studies in space, the full payload design and manufacturing files are made available.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rebekah Z Kitto
- Department of Chemistry, and Henry Eyring Center for Cell and Genome Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | | | - James Bevington
- International Space University, Strasbourg, France; School of Chemical Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Mera Horne
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | - Philippe Giegé
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Laurence Drouard
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Dimitri Heintz
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Claire Villette
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Nicolas Corre
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Mathilde Arrivé
- Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes-CNRS, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Michael J Manefield
- School of Chemical Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Robert Bowman
- Space Biosciences Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
| | | | | | - Chris Welch
- International Space University, Strasbourg, France.
| | | | - Ming C Hammond
- Department of Chemistry, and Henry Eyring Center for Cell and Genome Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Sathasivam M, Hosamani R, K Swamy B, Kumaran G S. Plant responses to real and simulated microgravity. LIFE SCIENCES IN SPACE RESEARCH 2021; 28:74-86. [PMID: 33612182 DOI: 10.1016/j.lssr.2020.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Plant biology experiments in real and simulated microgravity have significantly contributed to our understanding of physiology and behavior of plants. How do plants perceive microgravity? How that perception translates into stimulus? And in turn plant's response and adaptation to microgravity through physiological, cellular, and molecular changes have been reasonably well documented in the literature. Knowledge gained through these plant biology experiments in microgravity helped to successfully cultivate crops in space. For instance, salad crop such as red romaine lettuce grown on the International Space Station (ISS) is allowed to incorporate into the crew's supplementary diet. However, the use of plants as a sustainable bio-regenerative life support system (BLSS) to produce fresh food and O2, reduce CO2 level, recycle metabolic waste, and efficient water management for long-duration space exploration missions requires critical gap filling research. Hence, it is inevitable to reflect and review plant biology microgravity research findings time and again with a new set of data available in the literature. With that in focus, the current article discusses phenotypic, physiological, biochemical, cell cycle, cell wall changes and molecular responses of plants to microgravity both in real and simulated conditions with the latest literature.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Malarvizhi Sathasivam
- Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology (IABT), University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, 580005, India
| | - Ravikumar Hosamani
- Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology (IABT), University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, 580005, India.
| | - Basavalingayya K Swamy
- Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology (IABT), University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, 580005, India
| | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
Villacampa A, Ciska M, Manzano A, Vandenbrink JP, Kiss JZ, Herranz R, Medina FJ. From Spaceflight to Mars g-Levels: Adaptive Response of A. Thaliana Seedlings in a Reduced Gravity Environment Is Enhanced by Red-Light Photostimulation. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:E899. [PMID: 33477454 PMCID: PMC7830483 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22020899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Revised: 01/10/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The response of plants to the spaceflight environment and microgravity is still not well understood, although research has increased in this area. Even less is known about plants' response to partial or reduced gravity levels. In the absence of the directional cues provided by the gravity vector, the plant is especially perceptive to other cues such as light. Here, we investigate the response of Arabidopsis thaliana 6-day-old seedlings to microgravity and the Mars partial gravity level during spaceflight, as well as the effects of red-light photostimulation by determining meristematic cell growth and proliferation. These experiments involve microscopic techniques together with transcriptomic studies. We demonstrate that microgravity and partial gravity trigger differential responses. The microgravity environment activates hormonal routes responsible for proliferation/growth and upregulates plastid/mitochondrial-encoded transcripts, even in the dark. In contrast, the Mars gravity level inhibits these routes and activates responses to stress factors to restore cell growth parameters only when red photostimulation is provided. This response is accompanied by upregulation of numerous transcription factors such as the environmental acclimation-related WRKY-domain family. In the long term, these discoveries can be applied in the design of bioregenerative life support systems and space farming.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Villacampa
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (A.V.); (M.C.); (A.M.)
| | - Malgorzata Ciska
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (A.V.); (M.C.); (A.M.)
| | - Aránzazu Manzano
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (A.V.); (M.C.); (A.M.)
| | | | - John Z. Kiss
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina-Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402, USA;
| | - Raúl Herranz
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (A.V.); (M.C.); (A.M.)
| | - F. Javier Medina
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CSIC), Ramiro de Maeztu 9, 28040 Madrid, Spain; (A.V.); (M.C.); (A.M.)
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Abstract
Abstract
Because of difficulties during the fixation in space and the often reported enhanced expression of stress-related genes in space experiments, we investigated the possible effect of fixation on gene expression. Comparing two fixatives (RNAlater® and 70% ethanol), two-day-old Brassica rapa seedlings were either fixed by gradual exposure or immediate and complete immersion in fixative for two days. Neither fixative yielded high amounts of rRNA; RNAlater® resulted in higher RNA yield in shoot tissue but qPCR data showed higher yield in ethanol-fixed material. qPCR analyses showed strongly enhanced transcripts of stress-related genes, especially in RNAlater®-fixed material. The data suggest that fixation artefacts may be partially responsible for effects commonly attributed to space syndromes.
Collapse
|
9
|
Exploration of space to achieve scientific breakthroughs. Biotechnol Adv 2020; 43:107572. [PMID: 32540473 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2020.107572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2020] [Revised: 05/05/2020] [Accepted: 05/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Living organisms adapt to changing environments using their amazing flexibility to remodel themselves by a process called evolution. Environmental stress causes selective pressure and is associated with genetic and phenotypic shifts for better modifications, maintenance, and functioning of organismal systems. The natural evolution process can be used in complement to rational strain engineering for the development of desired traits or phenotypes as well as for the production of novel biomaterials through the imposition of one or more selective pressures. Space provides a unique environment of stressors (e.g., weightlessness and high radiation) that organisms have never experienced on Earth. Cells in the outer space reorganize and develop or activate a range of molecular responses that lead to changes in cellular properties. Exposure of cells to the outer space will lead to the development of novel variants more efficiently than on Earth. For instance, natural crop varieties can be generated with higher nutrition value, yield, and improved features, such as resistance against high and low temperatures, salt stress, and microbial and pest attacks. The review summarizes the literature on the parameters of outer space that affect the growth and behavior of cells and organisms as well as complex colloidal systems. We illustrate an understanding of gravity-related basic biological mechanisms and enlighten the possibility to explore the outer space environment for application-oriented aspects. This will stimulate biological research in the pursuit of innovative approaches for the future of agriculture and health on Earth.
Collapse
|
10
|
Kruse CPS, Meyers AD, Basu P, Hutchinson S, Luesse DR, Wyatt SE. Spaceflight induces novel regulatory responses in Arabidopsis seedling as revealed by combined proteomic and transcriptomic analyses. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2020; 20:237. [PMID: 32460700 PMCID: PMC7251690 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-020-02392-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 04/12/2020] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding of gravity sensing and response is critical to long-term human habitation in space and can provide new advantages for terrestrial agriculture. To this end, the altered gene expression profile induced by microgravity has been repeatedly queried by microarray and RNA-seq experiments to understand gravitropism. However, the quantification of altered protein abundance in space has been minimally investigated. RESULTS Proteomic (iTRAQ-labelled LC-MS/MS) and transcriptomic (RNA-seq) analyses simultaneously quantified protein and transcript differential expression of three-day old, etiolated Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings grown aboard the International Space Station along with their ground control counterparts. Protein extracts were fractionated to isolate soluble and membrane proteins and analyzed to detect differentially phosphorylated peptides. In total, 968 RNAs, 107 soluble proteins, and 103 membrane proteins were identified as differentially expressed. In addition, the proteomic analyses identified 16 differential phosphorylation events. Proteomic data delivered novel insights and simultaneously provided new context to previously made observations of gene expression in microgravity. There is a sweeping shift in post-transcriptional mechanisms of gene regulation including RNA-decapping protein DCP5, the splicing factors GRP7 and GRP8, and AGO4,. These data also indicate AHA2 and FERONIA as well as CESA1 and SHOU4 as central to the cell wall adaptations seen in spaceflight. Patterns of tubulin-α 1, 3,4 and 6 phosphorylation further reveal an interaction of microtubule and redox homeostasis that mirrors osmotic response signaling elements. The absence of gravity also results in a seemingly wasteful dysregulation of plastid gene transcription. CONCLUSIONS The datasets gathered from Arabidopsis seedlings exposed to microgravity revealed marked impacts on post-transcriptional regulation, cell wall synthesis, redox/microtubule dynamics, and plastid gene transcription. The impact of post-transcriptional regulatory alterations represents an unstudied element of the plant microgravity response with the potential to significantly impact plant growth efficiency and beyond. What's more, addressing the effects of microgravity on AHA2, CESA1, and alpha tubulins has the potential to enhance cytoskeletal organization and cell wall composition, thereby enhancing biomass production and growth in microgravity. Finally, understanding and manipulating the dysregulation of plastid gene transcription has further potential to address the goal of enhancing plant growth in the stressful conditions of microgravity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Colin P S Kruse
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Interdisciplinary Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Alexander D Meyers
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Interdisciplinary Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Proma Basu
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Interdisciplinary Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Sarahann Hutchinson
- Department of Biological Sciences, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL, USA
| | - Darron R Luesse
- Department of Biological Sciences, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL, USA
| | - Sarah E Wyatt
- Department of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA.
- Interdisciplinary Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Califar B, Sng NJ, Zupanska A, Paul AL, Ferl RJ. Root Skewing-Associated Genes Impact the Spaceflight Response of Arabidopsis thaliana. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2020; 11:239. [PMID: 32194611 PMCID: PMC7064724 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.00239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2019] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The observation that plant roots skew in microgravity recently refuted the long-held conviction that skewing was a gravity-dependent phenomenon. Further, spaceflight root skewing suggests that specific root morphologies and cell wall remodeling systems may be important aspects of spaceflight physiological adaptation. However, connections between skewing, cell wall modification and spaceflight physiology are currently based on inferences rather than direct tests. Therefore, the Advanced Plant Experiments-03-2 (APEX-03-2) spaceflight study was designed to elucidate the contribution of two skewing- and cell wall-associated genes in Arabidopsis to root behavior and gene expression patterns in spaceflight, to assess whether interruptions of different skewing pathways affect the overall spaceflight-associated process. SPIRAL1 is a skewing-related protein implicated in directional cell expansion, and functions by regulating cortical microtubule dynamics. SKU5 is skewing-related glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored protein of the plasma membrane and cell wall implicated in stress response signaling. These two genes function in different cellular pathways that affect skewing on the Earth, and enable a test of the relevance of skewing pathways to spaceflight physiological adaptation. In this study, both sku5 and spr1 mutants showed different skewing behavior and markedly different patterns of gene expression in the spaceflight environment. The spr1 mutant showed fewer differentially expressed genes than its Col-0 wild-type, whereas sku5 showed considerably more than its WS wild-type. Developmental age played a substantial role in spaceflight acclimation in all genotypes, but particularly in sku5 plants, where spaceflight 4d seedlings had almost 10-times as many highly differentially expressed genes as the 8d seedlings. These differences demonstrated that the two skewing pathways represented by SKU5 and SPR1 have unique and opposite contributions to physiological adaptation to spaceflight. The spr1 response is less intense than wild type, suggesting that the loss of SPR1 positively impacts spaceflight adaptation. Conversely, the intensity of the sku5 responses suggests that the loss of SKU5 initiates a much more complex, deeper and more stress related response to spaceflight. This suggests that proper SKU5 function is important to spaceflight adaptation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brandon Califar
- Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- The Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Program in Genetics and Genomics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Natasha J. Sng
- Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Agata Zupanska
- Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Anna-Lisa Paul
- Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- The Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Program in Genetics and Genomics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology and Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- *Correspondence: Anna-Lisa Paul,
| | - Robert J. Ferl
- Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- The Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Program in Genetics and Genomics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Robert J. Ferl,
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Zhou M, Sng NJ, LeFrois CE, Paul AL, Ferl RJ. Epigenomics in an extraterrestrial environment: organ-specific alteration of DNA methylation and gene expression elicited by spaceflight in Arabidopsis thaliana. BMC Genomics 2019; 20:205. [PMID: 30866818 PMCID: PMC6416986 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-019-5554-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2018] [Accepted: 02/21/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Plants adapted to diverse environments on Earth throughout their evolutionary history, and developed mechanisms to thrive in a variety of terrestrial habitats. When plants are grown in the novel environment of spaceflight aboard the International Space Station (ISS), an environment completely outside their evolutionary history, they respond with unique alterations to their gene expression profile. Identifying the genes important for physiological adaptation to spaceflight and dissecting the biological processes and pathways engaged by plants during spaceflight has helped reveal spaceflight adaptation, and has furthered understanding of terrestrial growth processes. However, the underlying regulatory mechanisms responsible for these changes in gene expression patterns are just beginning to be explored. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation at position five in cytosine, has been shown to play a role in the physiological adaptation to adverse terrestrial environments, and may play a role in spaceflight as well. RESULTS Whole Genome Bisulfite Sequencing of DNA of Arabidopsis grown on the ISS from seed revealed organ-specific patterns of differential methylation compared to ground controls. The overall levels of methylation in CG, CHG, and CHH contexts were similar between flight and ground DNA, however, thousands of specifically differentially methylated cytosines were discovered, and there were clear organ-specific differences in methylation patterns. Spaceflight leaves had higher methylation levels in CHG and CHH contexts within protein-coding genes in spaceflight; about a fifth of the leaf genes were also differentially regulated in spaceflight, almost half of which were associated with reactive oxygen signaling. CONCLUSIONS The physiological adaptation of plants to spaceflight is likely nuanced by epigenomic modification. This is the first examination of differential genomic methylation from plants grown completely in the spaceflight environment of the ISS in plant growth hardware developed for informing exploration life support strategies. Yet even in this optimized plant habitat, plants respond as if stressed. These data suggest that gene expression associated with physiological adaptation to spaceflight is regulated in part by methylation strategies similar to those engaged with familiar terrestrial stress responses. The differential methylation maps generated here provide a useful reference for elucidating the layers of regulation of spaceflight responses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mingqi Zhou
- 0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA ,0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA
| | - Natasha J. Sng
- 0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA ,0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA
| | - Collin E. LeFrois
- 0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA
| | - Anna-Lisa Paul
- 0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA ,0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA
| | - Robert J. Ferl
- 0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA ,0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA ,0000 0004 1936 8091grid.15276.37Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Sng NJ, Kolaczkowski B, Ferl RJ, Paul AL. A member of the CONSTANS-Like protein family is a putative regulator of reactive oxygen species homeostasis and spaceflight physiological adaptation. AOB PLANTS 2019; 11:ply075. [PMID: 30705745 PMCID: PMC6348315 DOI: 10.1093/aobpla/ply075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2018] [Accepted: 12/12/2018] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
A feature of the physiological adaptation to spaceflight in Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis) is the induction of reactive oxygen species (ROS)-associated gene expression. The patterns of ROS-associated gene expression vary among Arabidopsis ecotypes, and the role of ROS signalling in spaceflight acclimation is unknown. What could differences in ROS gene regulation between ecotypes on orbit reveal about physiological adaptation to novel environments? Analyses of ecotype-dependent responses to spaceflight resulted in the elucidation of a previously uncharacterized gene (OMG1) as being ROS-associated. The OMG1 5' flanking region is an active promoter in cells where ROS activity is commonly observed, such as in pollen tubes, root hairs, and in other tissues upon wounding. qRT-PCR analyses revealed that upon wounding on Earth, OMG1 is an apparent transcriptional regulator of MYB77 and GRX480, which are associated with the ROS pathway. Fluorescence-based ROS assays show that OMG1 affects ROS production. Phylogenetic analysis of OMG1 and closely related homologs suggests that OMG1 is a distant, unrecognized member of the CONSTANS-Like protein family, a member that arose via gene duplication early in the angiosperm lineage and subsequently lost its first DNA-binding B-box1 domain. These data illustrate that members of the rapidly evolving COL protein family play a role in regulating ROS pathway functions, and their differential regulation on orbit suggests a role for ROS signalling in spaceflight physiological adaptation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natasha J Sng
- Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Bryan Kolaczkowski
- Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Robert J Ferl
- Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- Horticultural Science Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research (ICBR), University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Anna-Lisa Paul
- Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- Horticultural Science Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
- Corresponding author’s e-mail address:
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
HSFA2 Functions in the Physiological Adaptation of Undifferentiated Plant Cells to Spaceflight. Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:ijms20020390. [PMID: 30658467 PMCID: PMC6359015 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20020390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2018] [Revised: 12/29/2018] [Accepted: 01/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Heat Shock Factor A2 (HsfA2) is part of the Heat Shock Factor (HSF) network, and plays an essential role beyond heat shock in environmental stress responses and cellular homeostatic control. Arabidopsis thaliana cell cultures derived from wild type (WT) ecotype Col-0 and a knockout line deficient in the gene encoding HSFA2 (HSFA2 KO) were grown aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to ascertain whether the HSF network functions in the adaptation to the novel environment of spaceflight. Microarray gene expression data were analyzed using a two-part comparative approach. First, genes differentially expressed between the two environments (spaceflight to ground) were identified within the same genotype, which represented physiological adaptation to spaceflight. Second, gene expression profiles were compared between the two genotypes (HSFA2 KO to WT) within the same environment, which defined genes uniquely required by each genotype on the ground and in spaceflight-adapted states. Results showed that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and unfolded protein response (UPR) define the HSFA2 KO cells' physiological state irrespective of the environment, and likely resulted from a deficiency in the chaperone-mediated protein folding machinery in the mutant. Results further suggested that additional to its universal stress response role, HsfA2 also has specific roles in the physiological adaptation to spaceflight through cell wall remodeling, signal perception and transduction, and starch biosynthesis. Disabling HsfA2 altered the physiological state of the cells, and impacted the mechanisms induced to adapt to spaceflight, and identified HsfA2-dependent genes that are important to the adaption of wild type cells to spaceflight. Collectively these data indicate a non-thermal role for the HSF network in spaceflight adaptation.
Collapse
|
15
|
Paul AL, Sng NJ, Zupanska AK, Krishnamurthy A, Schultz ER, Ferl RJ. Genetic dissection of the Arabidopsis spaceflight transcriptome: Are some responses dispensable for the physiological adaptation of plants to spaceflight? PLoS One 2017; 12:e0180186. [PMID: 28662188 PMCID: PMC5491145 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0180186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Accepted: 06/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Experimentation on the International Space Station has reached the stage where repeated and nuanced transcriptome studies are beginning to illuminate the structural and metabolic differences between plants grown in space compared to plants on the Earth. Genes that are important in establishing the spaceflight responses are being identified, their roles in spaceflight physiological adaptation are increasingly understood, and the fact that different genotypes adapt differently is recognized. However, the basic question of whether these spaceflight responses are actually required for survival has yet to be posed, and the fundamental notion that spaceflight responses may be non-adaptive has yet to be explored. Therefore the experiments presented here were designed to ask if portions of the plant spaceflight response can be genetically removed without causing loss of spaceflight survival and without causing increased stress responses. The CARA experiment compared the spaceflight transcriptome responses in the root tips of two Arabidopsis ecotypes, Col-0 and WS, as well as that of a PhyD mutant of Col-0. When grown with the ambient light of the ISS, phyD plants displayed a significantly reduced spaceflight transcriptome response compared to Col-0, suggesting that altering the activity of a single gene can actually improve spaceflight adaptation by reducing the transcriptome cost of physiological adaptation. The WS genotype showed an even simpler spaceflight transcriptome response in the ambient light of the ISS, more broadly indicating that the plant genotype can be manipulated to reduce the cost of spaceflight adaptation, as measured by transcriptional response. These differential genotypic responses suggest that genetic manipulation could further reduce, or perhaps eliminate the metabolic cost of spaceflight adaptation. When plants were germinated and then left in the dark on the ISS, the WS genotype actually mounted a larger transcriptome response than Col-0, suggesting that the in-space light environment affects physiological adaptation, which implies that manipulating the local habitat can also substantially impact the metabolic cost of spaceflight adaptation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
| | - Natasha J. Sng
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
| | - Agata K. Zupanska
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
| | - Aparna Krishnamurthy
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
| | - Eric R. Schultz
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
| | - Robert J. Ferl
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology and Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Kordyum EL, Chapman DK. Plants and microgravity: Patterns of microgravity effects at the cellular and molecular levels. CYTOL GENET+ 2017. [DOI: 10.3103/s0095452717020049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
17
|
Enriching Genomic Resources and Marker Development from Transcript Sequences of Jatropha curcas for Microgravity Studies. Int J Genomics 2017; 2017:8614160. [PMID: 28154822 PMCID: PMC5244023 DOI: 10.1155/2017/8614160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 11/28/2016] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Jatropha (Jatropha curcas L.) is an economically important species with a great potential for biodiesel production. To enrich the jatropha genomic databases and resources for microgravity studies, we sequenced and annotated the transcriptome of jatropha and developed SSR and SNP markers from the transcriptome sequences. In total 1,714,433 raw reads with an average length of 441.2 nucleotides were generated. De novo assembling and clustering resulted in 115,611 uniquely assembled sequences (UASs) including 21,418 full-length cDNAs and 23,264 new jatropha transcript sequences. The whole set of UASs were fully annotated, out of which 59,903 (51.81%) were assigned with gene ontology (GO) term, 12,584 (10.88%) had orthologs in Eukaryotic Orthologous Groups (KOG), and 8,822 (7.63%) were mapped to 317 pathways in six different categories in Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genome (KEGG) database, and it contained 3,588 putative transcription factors. From the UASs, 9,798 SSRs were discovered with AG/CT as the most frequent (45.8%) SSR motif type. Further 38,693 SNPs were detected and 7,584 remained after filtering. This UAS set has enriched the current jatropha genomic databases and provided a large number of genetic markers, which can facilitate jatropha genetic improvement and many other genetic and biological studies.
Collapse
|
18
|
Schüler O, Hemmersbach R, Böhmer M. A Bird's-Eye View of Molecular Changes in Plant Gravitropism Using Omics Techniques. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2015; 6:1176. [PMID: 26734055 PMCID: PMC4689802 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2015.01176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2015] [Accepted: 12/08/2015] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
During evolution, plants have developed mechanisms to adapt to a variety of environmental stresses, including drought, high salinity, changes in carbon dioxide levels and pathogens. Central signaling hubs and pathways that are regulated in response to these stimuli have been identified. In contrast to these well studied environmental stimuli, changes in transcript, protein and metabolite levels in response to a gravitational stimulus are less well understood. Amyloplasts, localized in statocytes of the root tip, in mesophyll cells of coleoptiles and in the elongation zone of the growing internodes comprise statoliths in higher plants. Deviations of the statocytes with respect to the earthly gravity vector lead to a displacement of statoliths relative to the cell due to their inertia and thus to gravity perception. Downstream signaling events, including the conversion from the biophysical signal of sedimentation of distinct heavy mass to a biochemical signal, however, remain elusive. More recently, technical advances, including clinostats, drop towers, parabolic flights, satellites, and the International Space Station, allowed researchers to study the effect of altered gravity conditions - real and simulated micro- as well as hypergravity on plants. This allows for a unique opportunity to study plant responses to a purely anthropogenic stress for which no evolutionary program exists. Furthermore, the requirement for plants as food and oxygen sources during prolonged manned space explorations led to an increased interest in the identi-fication of genes involved in the adaptation of plants to microgravity. Transcriptomic, proteomic, phosphoproteomic, and metabolomic profiling strategies provide a sensitive high-throughput approach to identify biochemical alterations in response to changes with respect to the influence of the gravitational vector and thus the acting gravitational force on the transcript, protein and metabolite level. This review aims at summarizing recent experimental approaches and discusses major observations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Schüler
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Gravitational Biology, German Aerospace CenterCologne, Germany
- Institute of Plant Biology and Biotechnology, Westfälische Wilhelms UniversitätMünster, Germany
| | - Ruth Hemmersbach
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Gravitational Biology, German Aerospace CenterCologne, Germany
| | - Maik Böhmer
- Institute of Plant Biology and Biotechnology, Westfälische Wilhelms UniversitätMünster, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
The Utilization of Plant Facilities on the International Space Station-The Composition, Growth, and Development of Plant Cell Walls under Microgravity Conditions. PLANTS 2015; 4:44-62. [PMID: 27135317 PMCID: PMC4844336 DOI: 10.3390/plants4010044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2014] [Revised: 11/27/2014] [Accepted: 12/15/2014] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
In the preparation for missions to Mars, basic knowledge of the mechanisms of growth and development of living plants under microgravity (micro-g) conditions is essential. Focus has centered on the g-effects on rigidity, including mechanisms of signal perception, transduction, and response in gravity resistance. These components of gravity resistance are linked to the evolution and acquisition of responses to various mechanical stresses. An overview is given both on the basic effect of hypergravity as well as of micro-g conditions in the cell wall changes. The review includes plant experiments in the US Space Shuttle and the effect of short space stays (8-14 days) on single cells (plant protoplasts). Regeneration of protoplasts is dependent on cortical microtubules to orient the nascent cellulose microfibrils in the cell wall. The space protoplast experiments demonstrated that the regeneration capacity of protoplasts was retarded. Two critical factors are the basis for longer space experiments: a. the effects of gravity on the molecular mechanisms for cell wall development, b. the availability of facilities and hardware for performing cell wall experiments in space and return of RNA/DNA back to the Earth. Linked to these aspects is a description of existing hardware functioning on the International Space Station.
Collapse
|
20
|
A whole-genome microarray study of Arabidopsis thaliana semisolid callus cultures exposed to microgravity and nonmicrogravity related spaceflight conditions for 5 days on board of Shenzhou 8. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2015; 2015:547495. [PMID: 25654111 PMCID: PMC4309294 DOI: 10.1155/2015/547495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2014] [Revised: 08/26/2014] [Accepted: 09/09/2014] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The Simbox mission was the first joint space project between Germany and China in November 2011. Eleven-day-old Arabidopsis thaliana wild type semisolid callus cultures were integrated into fully automated plant cultivation containers and exposed to spaceflight conditions within the Simbox hardware on board of the spacecraft Shenzhou 8. The related ground experiment was conducted under similar conditions. The use of an in-flight centrifuge provided a 1 g gravitational field in space. The cells were metabolically quenched after 5 days via RNAlater injection. The impact on the Arabidopsis transcriptome was investigated by means of whole-genome gene expression analysis. The results show a major impact of nonmicrogravity related spaceflight conditions. Genes that were significantly altered in transcript abundance are mainly involved in protein phosphorylation and MAPK cascade-related signaling processes, as well as in the cellular defense and stress responses. In contrast to short-term effects of microgravity (seconds, minutes), this mission identified only minor changes after 5 days of microgravity. These concerned genes coding for proteins involved in the plastid-associated translation machinery, mitochondrial electron transport, and energy production.
Collapse
|
21
|
Ferl RJ, Koh J, Denison F, Paul AL. Spaceflight induces specific alterations in the proteomes of Arabidopsis. ASTROBIOLOGY 2015; 15:32-56. [PMID: 25517942 PMCID: PMC4290804 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2014.1210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Life in spaceflight demonstrates remarkable acclimation processes within the specialized habitats of vehicles subjected to the myriad of unique environmental issues associated with orbital trajectories. To examine the response processes that occur in plants in space, leaves and roots from Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedlings from three GFP reporter lines that were grown from seed for 12 days on the International Space Station and preserved on orbit in RNAlater were returned to Earth and analyzed by using iTRAQ broad-scale proteomics procedures. Using stringent criteria, we identified over 1500 proteins, which included 1167 leaf proteins and 1150 root proteins we were able to accurately quantify. Quantification revealed 256 leaf proteins and 358 root proteins that showed statistically significant differential abundance in the spaceflight samples compared to ground controls, with few proteins differentially regulated in common between leaves and roots. This indicates that there are measurable proteomics responses to spaceflight and that the responses are organ-specific. These proteomics data were compared with transcriptome data from similar spaceflight samples, showing that there is a positive but limited relationship between transcriptome and proteome regulation of the overall spaceflight responses of plants. These results are discussed in terms of emergence understanding of plant responses to spaceflight particularly with regard to cell wall remodeling, as well as in the context of deriving multiple omics data sets from a single on-orbit preservation and operations approach.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert J. Ferl
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | - Jin Koh
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | - Fiona Denison
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | - Anna-Lisa Paul
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Kwon T, Sparks JA, Nakashima J, Allen SN, Tang Y, Blancaflor EB. Transcriptional response of Arabidopsis seedlings during spaceflight reveals peroxidase and cell wall remodeling genes associated with root hair development. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2015; 102:21-35. [PMID: 25587145 DOI: 10.3732/ajb.1400458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED • PREMISE OF THE STUDY Plants will be an important component of advanced life support systems during space exploration missions. Therefore, understanding their biology in the spacecraft environment will be essential before they can be used for such systems.• METHODS Seedlings of Arabidopsis thaliana were grown for 2 wk in the Biological Research in Canisters (BRIC) hardware on board the second to the last mission of the space shuttle Discovery (STS-131). Transcript profiles between ground controls and space-grown seedlings were compared using stringent selection criteria.• KEY RESULTS Expression of transcripts associated with oxidative stress and cell wall remodeling was repressed in microgravity. These downregulated genes were previously shown to be enriched in root hairs consistent with seedling phenotypes observed in space. Mutations in genes that were downregulated in microgravity, including two uncharacterized root hair-expressed class III peroxidase genes (PRX44 and PRX57), led to defective polar root hair growth on Earth. PRX44 and PRX57 mutants had ruptured root hairs, which is a typical phenotype of tip-growing cells with defective cell walls and those subjected to stress.• CONCLUSIONS Long-term exposure to microgravity negatively impacts tip growth by repressing expression of genes essential for normal root hair development. Whereas changes in peroxidase gene expression leading to reduced root hair growth in space are actin-independent, root hair development modulated by phosphoinositides could be dependent on the actin cytoskeleton. These results have profound implications for plant adaptation to microgravity given the importance of tip growing cells such as root hairs for efficient nutrient capture.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Taegun Kwon
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| | - J Alan Sparks
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| | - Jin Nakashima
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| | - Stacy N Allen
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| | - Yuhong Tang
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| | - Elison B Blancaflor
- Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, 2510 Sam Noble Parkway, Ardmore, Oklahoma 73401 USA
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Abstract
Before there was access to space, all experiments on plant tropisms were conducted upon the background of gravity. The gravity vector could be disrupted, such as with clinorotation and random positioning machines, and by manipulating incident angles of root growth with respect to gravity, such as with Darwin's plants on slanted plates, but gravity could not be removed from the experimental equation. Access to microgravity through spaceflight has opened new doors to plant research. Here we provide an overview of some of the methodologies of conducting plant research in the unique spaceflight environment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA,
| | | |
Collapse
|
24
|
De Vos WH, Beghuin D, Schwarz CJ, Jones DB, van Loon JJWA, Bereiter-Hahn J, Stelzer EHK. Invited review article: Advanced light microscopy for biological space research. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2014; 85:101101. [PMID: 25362364 DOI: 10.1063/1.4898123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
As commercial space flights have become feasible and long-term extraterrestrial missions are planned, it is imperative that the impact of space travel and the space environment on human physiology be thoroughly characterized. Scrutinizing the effects of potentially detrimental factors such as ionizing radiation and microgravity at the cellular and tissue level demands adequate visualization technology. Advanced light microscopy (ALM) is the leading tool for non-destructive structural and functional investigation of static as well as dynamic biological systems. In recent years, technological developments and advances in photochemistry and genetic engineering have boosted all aspects of resolution, readout and throughput, rendering ALM ideally suited for biological space research. While various microscopy-based studies have addressed cellular response to space-related environmental stressors, biological endpoints have typically been determined only after the mission, leaving an experimental gap that is prone to bias results. An on-board, real-time microscopical monitoring device can bridge this gap. Breadboards and even fully operational microscope setups have been conceived, but they need to be rendered more compact and versatile. Most importantly, they must allow addressing the impact of gravity, or the lack thereof, on physiologically relevant biological systems in space and in ground-based simulations. In order to delineate the essential functionalities for such a system, we have reviewed the pending questions in space science, the relevant biological model systems, and the state-of-the art in ALM. Based on a rigorous trade-off, in which we recognize the relevance of multi-cellular systems and the cellular microenvironment, we propose a compact, but flexible concept for space-related cell biological research that is based on light sheet microscopy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Winnok H De Vos
- Laboratory of Cell Biology and Histology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | | | - David B Jones
- Institute for Experimental Orthopaedics and Biomechanics, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany
| | - Jack J W A van Loon
- Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery/Oral Pathology, VU University Medical Center and Department of Oral Cell Biology, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Ernst H K Stelzer
- Physical Biology, BMLS (FB15, IZN), Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Oxidative Stress and Antioxidant Capacity in Barley Grown under Space Environment. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 2014; 74:1479-82. [DOI: 10.1271/bbb.100139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
|
26
|
Talalaiev O, Korduym E. Expression of small heat shock protein (sHSP) genes in the garden pea (Pisum sativum) under slow horizontal clinorotation. PLANT SIGNALING & BEHAVIOR 2014. [PMID: 24786104 PMCID: PMC4091545 DOI: 10.4161/psb.29035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Plant cells respond to stress conditions, such as high temperatures, by synthesizing small heat shock proteins (sHSPs). sHSPs are molecular chaperones that assist in protein folding and prevent irreversible protein aggregation. Although many sHSP genes are temperature-inducible, other variables, such as altered gravity, can induce significant changes in plant cell gene expression. Furthermore, not all subfamilies of sHSP genes share the same expression pattern. The objective of our research was to determine the effect of simulated microgravity (clinorotation) on the expression of sHSP gene subfamilies with different subcellular locations in etiolated pea (Pisum sativum) seedlings. sHSP gene expression levels were examined using quantitative real-time RT-PCR (qPCR). qPCR results demonstrated that sHSP genes were constitutively expressed in seedlings. High temperatures increased the expression of sHSP genes by several thousand-fold. However, simulated microgravity did not have any significant effects on sHSP gene expression.
Collapse
|
27
|
Kordyum EL. Plant cell gravisensitivity and adaptation to microgravity. PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2014; 16 Suppl 1:79-90. [PMID: 23731198 DOI: 10.1111/plb.12047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2013] [Accepted: 04/09/2013] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
A short overview on the effects of real and simulated microgravity on certain cell components and processes, including new information obtained recently, is presented. Attention is focused on the influence of real and simulated microgravity on plant cells that are not specialised to gravity perception and on seed formation. The paper considers the possibility of full adaptation of plants to microgravity, and suggests some questions for future plant research in order to make decisions on fundamental and applied problems of plant space biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- E L Kordyum
- Institute of Botany, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Correll MJ, Pyle TP, Millar KDL, Sun Y, Yao J, Edelmann RE, Kiss JZ. Transcriptome analyses of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings grown in space: implications for gravity-responsive genes. PLANTA 2013; 238:519-33. [PMID: 23771594 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-013-1909-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2012] [Accepted: 06/03/2013] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
The transcriptome of seedlings was analyzed from experiments performed on the International Space Station to study the interacting effects of light and gravity on plant tropisms (project named TROPI-2; Kiss et al. 2012). Seeds of Arabidopsis were germinated in space, and seedlings were then grown in the European Modular Cultivation System for 4 days at ~1g followed by exposure to a range of gravitational accelerations (from microgravity to 1g) and two light treatments (blue light with or without a 1 h pretreatment with red). At the end of the experiments, the cassettes containing the seedlings were frozen in the minus eighty laboratory freezer and returned to Earth on space shuttle mission STS-131. The RNA was extracted from whole seedlings and used for the transcriptome analyses. A comparison of 1g spaceflight samples with 1g ground controls identified 230 genes that were differentially regulated at least twofold, emphasizing the need for "in situ" tissue fixation on a 1g centrifuge as an important control for spaceflight experiments. A further comparison of all spaceflight samples with ground controls identified approximately 280 genes that were differentially regulated at least twofold. Of these genes, several were involved in regulating cell polarity (i.e., auxin, calcium, lipid metabolism), cell-wall development, oxygen status, and cell defense or stress. However, when the transcriptome of the all g-treated spaceflight samples was compared with microgravity samples, only ~130 genes were identified as being differently regulated (P ≤ 0.01). Of this subset, only 27 genes were at least twofold differently regulated between microgravity and 1g space samples and included putative/pseudo/undefined genes (14), transposable elements (5), an expansin (ATEXP24; At1g21240), a cell-wall kinase (WAK3; At1g21240), a laccase-like flavonoid oxidase (TT10; At5g48100), among others.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melanie J Correll
- Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
29
|
Paul AL, Zupanska AK, Schultz ER, Ferl RJ. Organ-specific remodeling of the Arabidopsis transcriptome in response to spaceflight. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2013; 13:112. [PMID: 23919896 PMCID: PMC3750915 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2229-13-112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2013] [Accepted: 08/01/2013] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Spaceflight presents a novel environment that is outside the evolutionary experience of terrestrial organisms. Full activation of the International Space Station as a science platform complete with sophisticated plant growth chambers, laboratory benches, and procedures for effective sample return, has enabled a new level of research capability and hypothesis testing in this unique environment. The opportunity to examine the strategies of environmental sensing in spaceflight, which includes the absence of unit gravity, provides a unique insight into the balance of influence among abiotic cues directing plant growth and development: including gravity, light, and touch. The data presented here correlate morphological and transcriptome data from replicated spaceflight experiments. RESULTS The transcriptome of Arabidopsis thaliana demonstrated organ-specific changes in response to spaceflight, with 480 genes showing significant changes in expression in spaceflight plants compared with ground controls by at least 1.9-fold, and 58 by more than 7-fold. Leaves, hypocotyls, and roots each displayed unique patterns of response, yet many gene functions within the responses are related. Particularly represented across the dataset were genes associated with cell architecture and growth hormone signaling; processes that would not be anticipated to be altered in microgravity yet may correlate with morphological changes observed in spaceflight plants. As examples, differential expression of genes involved with touch, cell wall remodeling, root hairs, and cell expansion may correlate with spaceflight-associated root skewing, while differential expression of auxin-related and other gravity-signaling genes seemingly correlates with the microgravity of spaceflight. Although functionally related genes were differentially represented in leaves, hypocotyls, and roots, the expression of individual genes varied substantially across organ types, indicating that there is no single response to spaceflight. Rather, each organ employed its own response tactics within a shared strategy, largely involving cell wall architecture. CONCLUSIONS Spaceflight appears to initiate cellular remodeling throughout the plant, yet specific strategies of the response are distinct among specific organs of the plant. Further, these data illustrate that in the absence of gravity plants rely on other environmental cues to initiate the morphological responses essential to successful growth and development, and that the basis for that engagement lies in the differential expression of genes in an organ-specific manner that maximizes the utilization of these signals--such as the up-regulation of genes associated with light-sensing in roots.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Agata K Zupanska
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Eric R Schultz
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Robert J Ferl
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Paul AL, Wheeler RM, Levine HG, Ferl RJ. Fundamental plant biology enabled by the space shuttle. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2013; 100:226-34. [PMID: 23281389 DOI: 10.3732/ajb.1200338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
The relationship between fundamental plant biology and space biology was especially synergistic in the era of the Space Shuttle. While all terrestrial organisms are influenced by gravity, the impact of gravity as a tropic stimulus in plants has been a topic of formal study for more than a century. And while plants were parts of early space biology payloads, it was not until the advent of the Space Shuttle that the science of plant space biology enjoyed expansion that truly enabled controlled, fundamental experiments that removed gravity from the equation. The Space Shuttle presented a science platform that provided regular science flights with dedicated plant growth hardware and crew trained in inflight plant manipulations. Part of the impetus for plant biology experiments in space was the realization that plants could be important parts of bioregenerative life support on long missions, recycling water, air, and nutrients for the human crew. However, a large part of the impetus was that the Space Shuttle enabled fundamental plant science essentially in a microgravity environment. Experiments during the Space Shuttle era produced key science insights on biological adaptation to spaceflight and especially plant growth and tropisms. In this review, we present an overview of plant science in the Space Shuttle era with an emphasis on experiments dealing with fundamental plant growth in microgravity. This review discusses general conclusions from the study of plant spaceflight biology enabled by the Space Shuttle by providing historical context and reviews of select experiments that exemplify plant space biology science.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Horticultural Science Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32610, USA
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
Paul AL, Amalfitano CE, Ferl RJ. Plant growth strategies are remodeled by spaceflight. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2012; 12:232. [PMID: 23217113 PMCID: PMC3556330 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2229-12-232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2012] [Accepted: 11/02/2012] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Arabidopsis plants were grown on the International Space Station within specialized hardware that combined a plant growth habitat with a camera system that can capture images at regular intervals of growth. The Imaging hardware delivers telemetric data from the ISS, specifically images received in real-time from experiments on orbit, providing science without sample return. Comparable Ground Controls were grown in a sister unit that is maintained in the Orbital Environment Simulator at Kennedy Space Center. One of many types of biological data that can be analyzed in this fashion is root morphology. Arabidopsis seeds were geminated on orbit on nutrient gel Petri plates in a configuration that encouraged growth along the surface of the gel. Photos were taken every six hours for the 15 days of the experiment. RESULTS In the absence of gravity, but the presence of directional light, spaceflight roots remained strongly negatively phototropic and grew in the opposite direction of the shoot growth; however, cultivars WS and Col-0 displayed two distinct, marked differences in their growth patterns. First, cultivar WS skewed strongly to the right on orbit, while cultivar Col-0 grew with little deviation away from the light source. Second, the Spaceflight environment also impacted the rate of growth in Arabidopsis. The size of the Flight plants (as measured by primary root and hypocotyl length) was uniformly smaller than comparably aged Ground Control plants in both cultivars. CONCLUSIONS Skewing and waving, thought to be gravity dependent phenomena, occur in spaceflight plants. In the presence of an orienting light source, phenotypic trends in skewing are gravity independent, and the general patterns of directional root growth typified by a given genotype in unit gravity are recapitulated on orbit, although overall growth patterns on orbit are less uniform. Skewing appears independent of axial orientation on the ISS - suggesting that other tropisms (such as for oxygen and temperature) do not influence skewing. An aspect of the spaceflight environment also retards the rate of early Arabidopsis growth.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
- Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Claire E Amalfitano
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Robert J Ferl
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
- Program in Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32610, USA
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Paul AL, Zupanska AK, Ostrow DT, Zhang Y, Sun Y, Li JL, Shanker S, Farmerie WG, Amalfitano CE, Ferl RJ. Spaceflight transcriptomes: unique responses to a novel environment. ASTROBIOLOGY 2012; 12:40-56. [PMID: 22221117 PMCID: PMC3264962 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2011.0696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2011] [Accepted: 10/08/2011] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
The spaceflight environment presents unique challenges to terrestrial biology, including but not limited to the direct effects of gravity. As we near the end of the Space Shuttle era, there remain fundamental questions about the response and adaptation of plants to orbital spaceflight conditions. We address a key baseline question of whether gene expression changes are induced by the orbital environment, and then we ask whether undifferentiated cells, cells presumably lacking the typical gravity response mechanisms, perceive spaceflight. Arabidopsis seedlings and undifferentiated cultured Arabidopsis cells were launched in April, 2010, as part of the BRIC-16 flight experiment on STS-131. Biologically replicated DNA microarray and averaged RNA digital transcript profiling revealed several hundred genes in seedlings and cell cultures that were significantly affected by launch and spaceflight. The response was moderate in seedlings; only a few genes were induced by more than 7-fold, and the overall intrinsic expression level for most differentially expressed genes was low. In contrast, cell cultures displayed a more dramatic response, with dozens of genes showing this level of differential expression, a list comprised primarily of heat shock-related and stress-related genes. This baseline transcriptome profiling of seedlings and cultured cells confirms the fundamental hypothesis that survival of the spaceflight environment requires adaptive changes that are both governed and displayed by alterations in gene expression. The comparison of intact plants with cultures of undifferentiated cells confirms a second hypothesis: undifferentiated cells can detect spaceflight in the absence of specialized tissue or organized developmental structures known to detect gravity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Horticultural Sciences and Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | | | | | | | - Yijun Sun
- University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | | | | | | | | | - Robert J. Ferl
- Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology and Research, Horticultural Sciences and Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Paul AL, Manak MS, Mayfield JD, Reyes MF, Gurley WB, Ferl RJ. Parabolic flight induces changes in gene expression patterns in Arabidopsis thaliana. ASTROBIOLOGY 2011; 11:743-58. [PMID: 21970703 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2011.0659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Our primary objective was to evaluate gene expression changes in Arabidopsis thaliana in response to parabolic flight as part of a comprehensive approach to the molecular biology of spaceflight-related adaptations. In addition, we wished to establish parabolic flight as a tractable operations platform for molecular biology studies. In a succession of experiments on NASA's KC-135 and C-9 parabolic aircraft, Arabidopsis plants were presented with replicated exposure to parabolic flight. Transcriptome profiling revealed that parabolic flight caused changes in gene expression patterns that stood the statistical tests of replication on three different flight days. The earliest response, after 20 parabolas, was characterized by a prominence of genes associated with signal transduction. After 40 parabolas, this prominence was largely replaced by genes associated with biotic and abiotic stimuli and stress. Among these responses, three metabolic processes stand out in particular: the induction of auxin metabolism and signaling, the differential expression of genes associated with calcium-mediated signaling, and the repression of genes associated with disease resistance and cell wall biochemistry. Many, but not all, of these responses are known to be involved in gravity sensing in plants. Changes in auxin-related gene expression were also recorded by reporter genes tuned to auxin signal pathways. These data demonstrate that the parabolic flight environment is appropriate for molecular biology research involving the transition to microgravity, in that with replication, proper controls, and analyses, gene expression changes can be observed in the time frames of typical parabolic flight experiments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Lisa Paul
- Horticultural Sciences and Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
34
|
Shagimardanova EI, Gusev OA, Sychev VN, Levinskikh MA, Sharipova MR, Il’inskaya ON, Bingham G, Sugimoto M. Expression of stress response genes in barley Hordeum vulgare in a spaceflight environment. Mol Biol 2010. [DOI: 10.1134/s0026893310050080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
|
35
|
Abstract
Recent plans for human return to the Moon have significantly elevated scientific interest in the lunar environment with emphasis on the science to be done in preparation for the return and while on the lunar surface. Since the return to the Moon is envisioned as a dedicated and potentially longer-term commitment to lunar exploration, questions of the lunar environment and particularly its impact on biology and biological systems have become a significant part of the lunar science discussion. Plants are integral to the discussion of biology on the Moon. Plants are envisioned as important components of advanced habitats and fundamental components of advanced life-support systems. Moreover, plants are sophisticated multicellular eukaryotic life-forms with highly orchestrated developmental processes, well-characterized signal transduction pathways, and exceedingly fine-tuned responses to their environments. Therefore, plants represent key test organisms for understanding the biological impact of the lunar environment on terrestrial life-forms. Indeed, plants were among the initial and primary organisms that were exposed to returned lunar regolith from the Apollo lunar missions. This review discusses the original experiments involving plants in association with the Apollo samples, with the intent of understanding those studies within the context of the first lunar exploration program and drawing from those experiments the data to inform the studies critical within the next lunar exploration science agenda.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert J Ferl
- University of Florida, Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research and the Horticultural Sciences Department, PO Box 110690, Gainesville, FL 3201-0690, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|
36
|
Visscher AM, Paul AL, Kirst M, Alling AK, Silverstone S, Nechitailo G, Nelson M, Dempster WF, Van Thillo M, Allen JP, Ferl RJ. Effects of a spaceflight environment on heritable changes in wheat gene expression. ASTROBIOLOGY 2009; 9:359-67. [PMID: 19413505 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2008.0311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Once it was established that the spaceflight environment was not a drastic impediment to plant growth, a remaining space biology question was whether long-term spaceflight exposure could cause changes in subsequent generations, even if they were returned to a normal Earth environment. In this study, we used a genomic approach to address this question. We tested whether changes in gene expression patterns occur in wheat plants that are several generations removed from growth in space, compared to wheat plants with no spaceflight exposure in their lineage. Wheat flown on Mir for 167 days in 1991 formed viable seeds back on Earth. These seeds were grown on the ground for three additional generations. Gene expression of fourth-generation Mir flight leaves was compared to that of the control leaves by using custom-made wheat microarrays. The data were evaluated using analysis of variance, and transcript abundance of each gene was contrasted among samples with t-tests. After corrections were made for multiple tests, none of the wheat genes represented on the microarrays showed a statistically significant difference in expression between wheat that has spaceflight exposure in their lineage and plants with no spaceflight exposure. This suggests that exposure to the spaceflight environment in low Earth orbit space stations does not cause significant, heritable changes in gene expression patterns in plants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- A M Visscher
- Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-0690 , USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
37
|
Salmi ML, Roux SJ. Gene expression changes induced by space flight in single-cells of the fern Ceratopteris richardii. PLANTA 2008; 229:151-9. [PMID: 18807069 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-008-0817-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2008] [Accepted: 09/03/2008] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
This work describes a rare high-throughput evaluation of gene expression changes induced by space flight in a single plant cell. The cell evaluated is the spore of the fern Ceratopteris richardii, which exhibits both perception and response to gravity. cDNA microarray and Q RT-PCR analysis of spores germinating in microgravity onboard NASA space shuttle flight STS-93 revealed changes in the mRNA expression of roughly 5% of genes analyzed. These gene expression changes were compared with gene expression changes that occur during gravity perception and response in animal cells and multicellular plants. Our data contribute to a better understanding of the impact of space flight conditions, including microgravity, on cellular growth and development, and provide insights into the adaptive strategies of individual cells in response to these conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mari L Salmi
- Section of Molecular Cell and Developmental Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station A6700, Austin, TX 78712-0183, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
38
|
Deployment of a Prototype Plant GFP Imager at the Arthur Clarke Mars Greenhouse of the Haughton Mars Project. SENSORS 2008; 8:2762-2773. [PMID: 27879848 PMCID: PMC3673444 DOI: 10.3390/s8042762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2008] [Accepted: 04/15/2008] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The use of engineered plants as biosensors has made elegant strides in the past decades, providing keen insights into the health of plants in general and particularly in the nature and cellular location of stress responses. However, most of the analytical procedures involve laboratory examination of the biosensor plants. With the advent of the green fluorescence protein (GFP) as a biosensor molecule, it became at least theoretically possible for analyses of gene expression to occur telemetrically, with the gene expression information of the plant delivered to the investigator over large distances simply as properly processed fluorescence images. Spaceflight and other extraterrestrial environments provide unique challenges to plant life, challenges that often require changes at the gene expression level to accommodate adaptation and survival. Having previously deployed transgenic plant biosensors to evaluate responses to orbital spaceflight, we wished to develop the plants and especially the imaging devices required to conduct such experiments robotically, without operator intervention, within extraterrestrial environments. This requires the development of an autonomous and remotely operated plant GFP imaging system and concomitant development of the communications infrastructure to manage dataflow from the imaging device. Here we report the results of deploying a prototype GFP imaging system within the Arthur Clarke Mars Greenhouse (ACMG) an autonomously operated greenhouse located within the Haughton Mars Project in the Canadian High Arctic. Results both demonstrate the applicability of the fundamental GFP biosensor technology and highlight the difficulties in collecting and managing telemetric data from challenging deployment environments.
Collapse
|
39
|
Stutte GW, Monje O, Hatfield RD, Paul AL, Ferl RJ, Simone CG. Microgravity effects on leaf morphology, cell structure, carbon metabolism and mRNA expression of dwarf wheat. PLANTA 2006; 224:1038-49. [PMID: 16708225 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-006-0290-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2006] [Accepted: 04/03/2006] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
The use of higher plants as the basis for a biological life support system that regenerates the atmosphere, purifies water, and produces food has been proposed for long duration space missions. The objective of these experiments was to determine what effects microgravity (microg) had on chloroplast development, carbohydrate metabolism and gene expression in developing leaves of Triticum aestivum L. cv. USU Apogee. Gravity naive wheat plants were sampled from a series of seven 21-day experiments conducted during Increment IV of the International Space Station. These samples were fixed in either 3% glutaraldehyde or RNAlater or frozen at -25 degrees C for subsequent analysis. In addition, leaf samples were collected from 24- and 14-day-old plants during the mission that were returned to Earth for analysis. Plants grown under identical light, temperature, relative humidity, photoperiod, CO(2), and planting density were used as ground controls. At the morphological level, there was little difference in the development of cells of wheat under microg conditions. Leaves developed in mug have thinner cross-sectional area than the 1g grown plants. Ultrastructurally, the chloroplasts of microg grown plants were more ovoid than those developed at 1g, and the thylakoid membranes had a trend to greater packing density. No differences were observed in the starch, soluble sugar, or lignin content of the leaves grown in microg or 1g conditions. Furthermore, no differences in gene expression were detected leaf samples collected at microg from 24-day-old leaves, suggesting that the spaceflight environment had minimal impact on wheat metabolism.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- G W Stutte
- Space Life Sciences Laboratory, Dynamac Corporation, Mail Code Dyn-3, Kennedy Space Center, Kennedy, FL 32899, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|