A Mutation in Plant-Specific SWI2/SNF2-Like Chromatin-Remodeling Proteins, DRD1 and DDM1, Delays Leaf Senescence in Arabidopsis thaliana

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 11; no. 1; p. e0146826
• Main Authors: Cho, Eun Ju, Choi, Seung Hee, Kim, Ji Hong, Kim, Ji Eun, Lee, Min Hee, Chung, Byung Yeoup, Woo, Hye Ryun, Kim, Jin-Hong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 11.01.2016; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Aging; Arabidopsis; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - physiology; Arabidopsis Proteins - genetics; Arabidopsis Proteins - physiology; Arabidopsis thaliana; Cell aging; Centromere - ultrastructure; Chlorophyll; Chlorophyll - chemistry; Chromatin - metabolism; Chromatin remodeling; Cluster Analysis; Deoxyribonucleic acid; DNA; DNA methylation; DNA-Binding Proteins - genetics; DNA-Binding Proteins - physiology; DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases - genetics; DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases - physiology; Dopamine D1 receptors; Energy; Epigenesis, Genetic; Epigenetics; Gene expression; Gene Expression Profiling; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Gene mutation; Genes, Plant; Genetic aspects; Genetics; Genome-Wide Association Study; Genomes; Leaves; Molecular biology; Mutants; Mutation; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; Phenotype; Photosynthesis; Physiological aspects; Plant Leaves - physiology; Proteins; Regulations; Remodeling; RNA - metabolism; Seeds; Senescence; Transcription; Transcription factors; Transcription Factors - genetics; Transcription Factors - physiology; Transcription, Genetic; South Korea; United States > US
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0146826

Leaf senescence is a finely regulated complex process; however, evidence for the involvement of epigenetic processes in the regulation of leaf senescence is still fragmentary. Therefore, we chose to examine the functions of DRD1, a SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodeling protein, in epigenetic regulation of leaf senescence, particularly because drd1-6 mutants exhibited a delayed leaf senescence phenotype. Photosynthetic parameters such as Fv/Fm and ETRmax were decreased in WT leaves compared to leaves of drd1-6 mutants after dark treatment. The WT leaves remarkably lost more chlorophyll and protein content during dark-induced senescence (DIS) than the drd1-6 leaves did. The induction of senescence-associated genes was noticeably inhibited in the drd1-6 mutant after 5-d of DIS. We compared changes in epigenetic regulation during DIS via quantitative expression analysis of 180-bp centromeric (CEN) and transcriptionally silent information (TSI) repeats. Their expression levels significantly increased in both the WT and the drd1-6 mutant, but did much less in the latter. Moreover, the delayed leaf senescence was observed in ddm1-2 mutants as well as the drd1-6, but not in drd1-p mutants. These data suggest that SWI2/SNF2 chromatin remodeling proteins such as DRD1 and DDM1 may influence leaf senescence possibly via epigenetic regulation.