Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure
Involvement of epigenetic mechanisms in the regulation of telomeres and transposable elements (TEs), genomic regions with the protective and potentially detrimental function, respectively, has been frequently studied. Here, we analyzed telomere lengths in <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i> plan...
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MDPI AG
2021-01-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/1/468 |
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| author | Klára Konečná Pavla Polanská Sováková Karin Anteková Jiří Fajkus Miloslava Fojtová |
| author_facet | Klára Konečná Pavla Polanská Sováková Karin Anteková Jiří Fajkus Miloslava Fojtová |
| author_sort | Klára Konečná |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Involvement of epigenetic mechanisms in the regulation of telomeres and transposable elements (TEs), genomic regions with the protective and potentially detrimental function, respectively, has been frequently studied. Here, we analyzed telomere lengths in <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i> plants of Columbia, Landsberg erecta and Wassilevskija ecotypes exposed repeatedly to the hypomethylation drug zebularine during germination. Shorter telomeres were detected in plants growing from seedlings germinated in the presence of zebularine with a progression in telomeric phenotype across generations, relatively high inter-individual variability, and diverse responses among ecotypes. Interestingly, the extent of telomere shortening in zebularine Columbia and Wassilevskija plants corresponded to the transcriptional activation of TEs, suggesting a correlated response of these genomic elements to the zebularine treatment. Changes in lengths of telomeres and levels of TE transcripts in leaves were not always correlated with a hypomethylation of cytosines located in these regions, indicating a cytosine methylation-independent level of their regulation. These observations, including differences among ecotypes together with distinct dynamics of the reversal of the disruption of telomere homeostasis and TEs transcriptional activation, reflect a complex involvement of epigenetic processes in the regulation of crucial genomic regions. Our results further demonstrate the ability of plant cells to cope with these changes without a critical loss of the genome stability. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T13:28:33Z |
| format | Article |
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| issn | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T13:28:33Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-edb217dcaefa4701be4ccedb51eb50f42023-11-21T08:38:25ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences1661-65961422-00672021-01-0122146810.3390/ijms22010468Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine ExposureKlára Konečná0Pavla Polanská Sováková1Karin Anteková2Jiří Fajkus3Miloslava Fojtová4Mendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute for Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech RepublicMendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute for Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech RepublicMendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute for Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech RepublicMendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute for Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech RepublicMendel Centre for Plant Genomics and Proteomics, Central European Institute for Technology (CEITEC), Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech RepublicInvolvement of epigenetic mechanisms in the regulation of telomeres and transposable elements (TEs), genomic regions with the protective and potentially detrimental function, respectively, has been frequently studied. Here, we analyzed telomere lengths in <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i> plants of Columbia, Landsberg erecta and Wassilevskija ecotypes exposed repeatedly to the hypomethylation drug zebularine during germination. Shorter telomeres were detected in plants growing from seedlings germinated in the presence of zebularine with a progression in telomeric phenotype across generations, relatively high inter-individual variability, and diverse responses among ecotypes. Interestingly, the extent of telomere shortening in zebularine Columbia and Wassilevskija plants corresponded to the transcriptional activation of TEs, suggesting a correlated response of these genomic elements to the zebularine treatment. Changes in lengths of telomeres and levels of TE transcripts in leaves were not always correlated with a hypomethylation of cytosines located in these regions, indicating a cytosine methylation-independent level of their regulation. These observations, including differences among ecotypes together with distinct dynamics of the reversal of the disruption of telomere homeostasis and TEs transcriptional activation, reflect a complex involvement of epigenetic processes in the regulation of crucial genomic regions. Our results further demonstrate the ability of plant cells to cope with these changes without a critical loss of the genome stability.https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/1/468<i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>epigeneticscytosine methylationtelomerestransposable elementszebularine |
| spellingShingle | Klára Konečná Pavla Polanská Sováková Karin Anteková Jiří Fajkus Miloslava Fojtová Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure International Journal of Molecular Sciences <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i> epigenetics cytosine methylation telomeres transposable elements zebularine |
| title | Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure |
| title_full | Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure |
| title_fullStr | Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure |
| title_full_unstemmed | Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure |
| title_short | Distinct Responses of Arabidopsis Telomeres and Transposable Elements to Zebularine Exposure |
| title_sort | distinct responses of arabidopsis telomeres and transposable elements to zebularine exposure |
| topic | <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i> epigenetics cytosine methylation telomeres transposable elements zebularine |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/1/468 |
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