title: Production of viable gametes without meiosis in maize deficient for an ARGONAUTE protein.
abstract: Apomixis is a form of asexual reproduction through seeds in angiosperms. Apomictic plants bypass meiosis and fertilization, developing offspring that are genetically identical to their mother. In a genetic screen for maize (Zea mays) mutants mimicking aspects of apomixis, we identified a dominant mutation resulting in the formation of functional unreduced gametes. The mutant shows defects in chromatin condensation during meiosis and subsequent failure to segregate chromosomes. The mutated locus codes for AGO104, a member of the ARGONAUTE family of proteins. AGO104 accumulates specifically in somatic cells surrounding the female meiocyte, suggesting a mobile signal rather than cell-autonomous control. AGO104 is necessary for non-CG methylation of centromeric and knob-repeat DNA. Digital gene expression tag profiling experiments using high-throughput sequencing show that AGO104 influences the transcription of many targets in the ovaries, with a strong effect on centromeric repeats. AGO104 is related to Arabidopsis thaliana AGO9, but while AGO9 acts to repress germ cell fate in somatic tissues, AGO104 acts to repress somatic fate in germ cells. Our findings show that female germ cell development in maize is dependent upon conserved small RNA pathways acting non-cell-autonomously in the ovule. Interfering with this repression leads to apomixis-like phenotypes in maize.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Plant Genome and Development Laboratory, UMR5096, 34394 Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Manjit
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Shalendra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goel
authors.forename: Robert B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Meeley
authors.forename: Christelle
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dantec
authors.forename: Hugues
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Parrinello
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Michaud
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Leblanc
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Grimanelli
mesh_terms: D002503:Centromere / Q000378:metabolism; D019175:DNA Methylation; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D006570:Heterochromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D008540:Meiosis; D009154:Mutation; D056771:Ovule / Q000502:physiology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018749:RNA, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D012100:Reproduction, Asexual; D003313:Zea mays / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D006570:Heterochromatin; D010940:Plant Proteins; D018749:RNA, Plant