title: Q&A: How do plants sense and respond to UV-B radiation?
abstract: Plants are able to sense UV-B through the UV-B photoreceptor UVR8. UV-B photon absorption by a UVR8 homodimer leads to UVR8 monomerization and interaction with the downstream signaling factor COP1. This then initiates changes in gene expression, which lead to several metabolic and morphological alterations. A major response is the activation of mechanisms associated with UV-B acclimation and UV-B tolerance, including biosynthesis of sunscreen metabolites, antioxidants and DNA repair enzymes. To balance the response, UVR8 is inactivated by regulated re-dimerization. Apart from their importance for plants, UVR8 and its interacting protein COP1 have already proved useful for the optogenetic toolkit used to engineer synthetic light-dependent responses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany and Plant Biology, University of Geneva, Sciences III, CH-1211, Geneva, 4, Switzerland. roman.ulm@unige.ch.
authors.forename: Roman
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ulm
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK.
authors.forename: Gareth I
authors.initials: GI
authors.lastname: Jenkins
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization / Q000528:radiation effects; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone / Q000378:metabolism*; D004260:DNA Repair / Q000528:radiation effects; D010944:Plants / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000528:radiation effects; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
chemical_list: D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone