title: [Seed aging and survival mechanisms].
abstract: Aging and death are universal to living systems. In temperate climate latitudes the mature seeds of higher plants are exposed to aging and have developed resistance mechanisms allowing survival and plant propagation. In addition to the physicochemical properties of the seed that confer stress resistance, the protein metabolism contributes importantly to longevity mechanisms. Recently, genetic studies have demonstrated the occurrence of the Protein L-isoaspartyl methyltransferase repair enzyme in controlling age-related protein damages and seed survival. These protective mechanisms by protein repair are widespread in all kingdoms, so that the use of seeds as models to study these controlling processes offers the prospect of understanding longevity mechanisms better.
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Recherche 204 INRA AgroParisTech de Biologie des Semences, UFR de Physiologie Végétale, AgroParisTech, 16 rue Claude Bernard, 75231 Paris Cedex 05. grappin@versailles.inra.fr
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Grappin
authors.forename: Gildas
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bourdais
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Collet
authors.forename: Béatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Godin
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Job
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ogé
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jullien
authors.forename: Loïc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rajjou
mesh_terms: D003890:Desiccation; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D018745:Genome, Plant; D018525:Germination / Q000235:genetics; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D011309:Preservation, Biological; D026601:Protein D-Aspartate-L-Isoaspartate Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D012639:Seeds / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D026601:Protein D-Aspartate-L-Isoaspartate Methyltransferase