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Carballo J, Achilli A, Hernández F, Bocchini M, Pasten MC, Marconi G, Albertini E, Zappacosta D, Echenique V. Differentially methylated genes involved in reproduction and ploidy levels in recent diploidized and tetraploidized Eragrostis curvula genotypes. PLANT REPRODUCTION 2024; 37:133-145. [PMID: 38055074 PMCID: PMC11180019 DOI: 10.1007/s00497-023-00490-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023]
Abstract
Epigenetics studies changes in gene activity without changes in the DNA sequence. Methylation is an epigenetic mechanism important in many pathways, such as biotic and abiotic stresses, cell division, and reproduction. Eragrostis curvula is a grass species reproducing by apomixis, a clonal reproduction by seeds. This work employed the MCSeEd technique to identify deferentially methylated positions, regions, and genes in the CG, CHG, and CHH contexts in E. curvula genotypes with similar genomic backgrounds but with different reproductive modes and ploidy levels. In this way, we focused the analysis on the cvs. Tanganyika INTA (4x, apomictic), Victoria (2x, sexual), and Bahiense (4x, apomictic). Victoria was obtained from the diploidization of Tanganyika INTA, while Bahiense was produced from the tetraploidization of Victoria. This study showed that polyploid/apomictic genotypes had more differentially methylated positions and regions than the diploid sexual ones. Interestingly, it was possible to observe fewer differentially methylated positions and regions in CG than in the other contexts, meaning CG methylation is conserved across the genotypes regardless of the ploidy level and reproductive mode. In the comparisons between sexual and apomictic genotypes, we identified differentially methylated genes involved in the reproductive pathways, specifically in meiosis, cell division, and fertilization. Another interesting observation was that several differentially methylated genes between the diploid and the original tetraploid genotype recovered their methylation status after tetraploidization, suggesting that methylation is an important mechanism involved in reproduction and ploidy changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Carballo
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - A Achilli
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - F Hernández
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Andrés 800, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - M Bocchini
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, Università degli Studi di Perugia, 06121, Perugia, Italy
| | - M C Pasten
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - G Marconi
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, Università degli Studi di Perugia, 06121, Perugia, Italy
| | - E Albertini
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, Università degli Studi di Perugia, 06121, Perugia, Italy.
| | - D Zappacosta
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
- Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Andrés 800, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
| | - V Echenique
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS-CCT-CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
- Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Andrés 800, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina.
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Siena LA, Michaud C, Selles B, Vega JM, Pessino SC, Ingouff M, Ortiz JPA, Leblanc O. TRIMETHYLGUANOSINE SYNTHASE1 mutations decanalize female germline development in Arabidopsis. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2023; 240:597-612. [PMID: 37548040 DOI: 10.1111/nph.19179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
Here, we report the characterization of a plant RNA methyltransferase, orthologous to yeast trimethylguanosine synthase1 (Tgs1p) and whose downregulation was associated with apomixis in Paspalum grasses. Using phylogenetic analyses and yeast complementation, we determined that land plant genomes all encode a conserved, specific TGS1 protein. Next, we studied the role of TGS1 in female reproduction using reporter lines and loss-of-function mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana. pAtTGS1:AtTGS1 reporters showed a dynamic expression pattern. They were highly active in the placenta and ovule primordia at emergence but, subsequently, showed weak signals in the nucellus. Although expressed throughout gametophyte development, activity became restricted to the female gamete and was also detected after fertilization during embryogenesis. TGS1 depletion altered the specification of the precursor cells that give rise to the female gametophytic generation and to the sporophyte, resulting in the formation of a functional aposporous-like lineage. Our results indicate that TGS1 participates in the mechanisms restricting cell fate acquisition to a single cell at critical transitions throughout the female reproductive lineage and, thus, expand our current knowledge of the mechanisms governing female reproductive fate in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorena A Siena
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario, CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Rosario, S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina
| | | | - Benjamin Selles
- DIADE, Univ Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, 34394, Montpellier, France
| | - Juan Manuel Vega
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario, CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Rosario, S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina
| | - Silvina C Pessino
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario, CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Rosario, S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina
| | - Mathieu Ingouff
- DIADE, Univ Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, 34394, Montpellier, France
| | - Juan Pablo A Ortiz
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario, CONICET-Universidad Nacional de Rosario, S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina
| | - Olivier Leblanc
- DIADE, Univ Montpellier, IRD, CIRAD, 34394, Montpellier, France
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Epigenetic Modifications in Plant Development and Reproduction. EPIGENOMES 2021; 5:epigenomes5040025. [PMID: 34968249 PMCID: PMC8715465 DOI: 10.3390/epigenomes5040025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Revised: 11/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Plants are exposed to highly fluctuating effects of light, temperature, weather conditions, and many other environmental factors throughout their life. As sessile organisms, unlike animals, they are unable to escape, hide, or even change their position. Therefore, the growth and development of plants are largely determined by interaction with the external environment. The success of this interaction depends on the ability of the phenotype plasticity, which is largely determined by epigenetic regulation. In addition to how environmental factors can change the patterns of genes expression, epigenetic regulation determines how genetic expression changes during the differentiation of one cell type into another and how patterns of gene expression are passed from one cell to its descendants. Thus, one genome can generate many ‘epigenomes’. Epigenetic modifications acquire special significance during the formation of gametes and plant reproduction when epigenetic marks are eliminated during meiosis and early embryogenesis and later reappear. However, during asexual plant reproduction, when meiosis is absent or suspended, epigenetic modifications that have arisen in the parental sporophyte can be transmitted to the next clonal generation practically unchanged. In plants that reproduce sexually and asexually, epigenetic variability has different adaptive significance. In asexuals, epigenetic regulation is of particular importance for imparting plasticity to the phenotype when, apart from mutations, the genotype remains unchanged for many generations of individuals. Of particular interest is the question of the possibility of transferring acquired epigenetic memory to future generations and its potential role for natural selection and evolution. All these issues will be discussed to some extent in this review.
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Soliman M, Bocchini M, Stein J, Ortiz JPA, Albertini E, Delgado L. Environmental and Genetic Factors Affecting Apospory Expressivity in Diploid Paspalum rufum. PLANTS 2021; 10:plants10102100. [PMID: 34685909 PMCID: PMC8537111 DOI: 10.3390/plants10102100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 09/22/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
In angiosperms, gametophytic apomixis (clonal reproduction through seeds) is strongly associated with polyploidy and hybridization. The trait is facultative and its expressivity is highly variable between genotypes. Here, we used an F1 progeny derived from diploid apomictic (aposporic) genotypes of Paspalum rufum and two F2 families, derived from F1 hybrids with different apospory expressivity (%AES), to analyze the influence of the environment and the transgenerational transmission of the trait. In addition, AFLP markers were developed in the F1 population to identify genomic regions associated with the %AES. Cytoembryological analyses showed that the %AES was significantly influenced by different environments, but remained stable across the years. F1 and F2 progenies showed a wide range of %AES variation, but most hybrids were not significantly different from the parental genotypes. Maternal and paternal genetic linkage maps were built covering the ten expected linkage groups (LG). A single-marker analysis detected at least one region of 5.7 cM on LG3 that was significantly associated with apospory expressivity. Our results underline the importance of environmental influence in modulating apospory expressivity and identified a genomic region associated with apospory expressivity at the diploid level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariano Soliman
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario (IICAR), CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina; (M.S.); (J.S.); (J.P.A.O.)
| | - Marika Bocchini
- Department Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, 06121 Perugia, Italy; (M.B.); (E.A.)
| | - Juliana Stein
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario (IICAR), CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina; (M.S.); (J.S.); (J.P.A.O.)
| | - Juan Pablo A. Ortiz
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario (IICAR), CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina; (M.S.); (J.S.); (J.P.A.O.)
| | - Emidio Albertini
- Department Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Perugia, 06121 Perugia, Italy; (M.B.); (E.A.)
| | - Luciana Delgado
- Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario (IICAR), CONICET, Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario S2125ZAA, Zavalla, Argentina; (M.S.); (J.S.); (J.P.A.O.)
- Correspondence:
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Carballo J, Zappacosta D, Selva JP, Caccamo M, Echenique V. Eragrostis curvula, a Model Species for Diplosporous Apomixis. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 10:1818. [PMID: 34579351 PMCID: PMC8472828 DOI: 10.3390/plants10091818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Revised: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Eragrostis curvula (Schrad.) Ness is a grass with a particular apomictic embryo sac development called Eragrostis type. Apomixis is a type of asexual reproduction that produces seeds without fertilization in which the resulting progeny is genetically identical to the mother plant and with the potential to fix the hybrid vigour from more than one generation, among other advantages. The absence of meiosis and the occurrence of only two rounds of mitosis instead of three during embryo sac development make this model unique and suitable to be transferred to economically important crops. Throughout this review, we highlight the advances in the knowledge of apomixis in E. curvula using different techniques such as cytoembryology, DNA methylation analyses, small-RNA-seq, RNA-seq, genome assembly, and genotyping by sequencing. The main bulk of evidence points out that apomixis is inherited as a single Mendelian factor, and it is regulated by genetic and epigenetic mechanisms controlled by a complex network. With all this information, we propose a model of the mechanisms involved in diplosporous apomixis in this grass. All the genetic and epigenetic resources generated in E. curvula to study the reproductive mode changed its status from an orphan to a well-characterised species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jose Carballo
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS–CCT–CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de la Carrindanga km 7, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina; (J.C.); (J.P.S.); (V.E.)
| | - Diego Zappacosta
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS–CCT–CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de la Carrindanga km 7, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina; (J.C.); (J.P.S.); (V.E.)
- Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Andrés 800, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina
| | - Juan Pablo Selva
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS–CCT–CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de la Carrindanga km 7, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina; (J.C.); (J.P.S.); (V.E.)
- Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Juan 670, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina
| | - Mario Caccamo
- NIAB, 93 Lawrence Weaver Road, Cambridge CB3 0LE, UK;
| | - Viviana Echenique
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS–CCT–CONICET Bahía Blanca), Camino de la Carrindanga km 7, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina; (J.C.); (J.P.S.); (V.E.)
- Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), San Andrés 800, Bahía Blanca 8000, Argentina
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