title: Lotus japonicus NF-YA1 Plays an Essential Role During Nodule Differentiation and Targets Members of the SHI/STY Gene Family.
abstract: Legume plants engage in intimate relationships with rhizobial bacteria to form nitrogen-fixing nodules, root-derived organs that accommodate the microsymbiont. Members of the Nuclear Factor Y (NF-Y) gene family, which have undergone significant expansion and functional diversification during plant evolution, are essential for this symbiotic liaison. Acting in a partially redundant manner, NF-Y proteins were shown, previously, to regulate bacterial infection, including selection of a superior rhizobial strain, and to mediate nodule structure formation. However, the exact mechanism by which these transcriptional factors exert their symbiotic functions has remained elusive. By carrying out detailed functional analyses of Lotus japonicus mutants, we demonstrate that LjNF-YA1 becomes indispensable downstream from the initial cortical cell divisions but prior to nodule differentiation, including cell enlargement and vascular bundle formation. Three affiliates of the SHORT INTERNODES/STYLISH transcription factor gene family, called STY1, STY2, and STY3, are demonstrated to be among likely direct targets of LjNF-YA1, and our results point to their involvement in nodule formation.
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.
authors.forename: Md Shakhawat
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hossain
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.|2 Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada.
authors.forename: Arina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shrestha
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.
authors.forename: Sihui
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.|2 Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada.
authors.forename: Mandana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miri
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.|2 Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada.
authors.forename: Ryan S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Austin
authors.affiliation: 3 Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, 2-1-1 Katahira, Sendai, 980-8577, Japan; and.
authors.forename: Shusei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.
authors.forename: Loretta
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ross
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.
authors.forename: Terry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Huebert
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tromas
authors.affiliation: 4 Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, Oklahoma, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Ivone
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Torres-Jerez
authors.affiliation: 4 Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, Oklahoma, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Yuhong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: 4 Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, Oklahoma, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Udvardi
authors.affiliation: 4 Plant Biology Division, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Ardmore, Oklahoma, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Jeremy D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.affiliation: 1 Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, London Research and Development Centre, London, Ontario, N5V 4T3 Canada.|2 Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, N6A 5B7 Canada.
authors.forename: Krzysztof
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Szczyglowski
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D023081:CCAAT-Binding Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D000070116:Lotus / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D009154:Mutation; D010641:Phenotype; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D012231:Rhizobium / Q000502:physiology*; D053204:Root Nodules, Plant / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D013559:Symbiosis; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D059467:Transcriptome
chemical_list: D023081:CCAAT-Binding Factor; D010940:Plant Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C402244:nuclear factor Y