Mapping methyl jasmonate-mediated transcriptional reprogramming of metabolism and cell cycle progression in cultured Arabidopsis cells.
Jasmonates (JAs) are plant-specific signaling molecules that steer a diverse set of physiological and developmental processes. Pathogen attack and wounding inflicted by herbivores induce the biosynthesis of these hormones, triggering defense responses both locally and systemically. We report on alterations in the transcriptome of a fast-dividing cell culture of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana after exogenous application of methyl JA (MeJA). Early MeJA response genes encoded the JA biosynthesis pathway proteins and key regulators of MeJA responses, including most JA ZIM domain proteins and MYC2, together with transcriptional regulators with potential, but yet unknown, functions in MeJA signaling. In a second transcriptional wave, MeJA reprogrammed cellular metabolism and cell cycle progression. Up-regulation of the monolignol biosynthesis gene set resulted in an increased production of monolignols and oligolignols, the building blocks of lignin. Simultaneously, MeJA repressed activation of M-phase genes, arresting the cell cycle in G(2). MeJA-responsive transcription factors were screened for their involvement in early signaling events, in particular the regulation of JA biosynthesis. Parallel screens based on yeast one-hybrid and transient transactivation assays identified both positive (MYC2 and the AP2/ERF factor ORA47) and negative (the C2H2 Zn finger proteins STZ/ZAT10 and AZF2) regulators, revealing a complex control of the JA autoregulatory loop and possibly other MeJA-mediated downstream processes.
Pauwels
Laurens
L
Department of Plant Systems Biology, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, Ghent University, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
Morreel
Kris
K
De Witte
Emilie
E
Lammertyn
Freya
F
Van Montagu
Marc
M
Boerjan
Wout
W
Inzé
Dirk
D
Goossens
Alain
A
D000085:Acetates / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000235:genetics; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003517:Cyclopentanes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D006131:Growth Inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D054883:Oxylipins / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D010937:Plant Growth Regulators / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
D000085:Acetates; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D003517:Cyclopentanes; D006131:Growth Inhibitors; D054883:Oxylipins; D010937:Plant Growth Regulators; D014157:Transcription Factors; C011006:jasmonic acid; C072239:methyl jasmonate