Different aspects of plant cell wall biology dominant the first few papers of this weeks Arabidopsis Research Roundup. Firstly Andrew Fleming (University of Sheffield) and colleagues identify that a specific type of cell wall stiffening is important in control of stomatal opening. Secondly are two papers from the lab of Paul Dupree (University of Cambridge) that investigate the role that xylan modifications play in the formation of the cell wall. Finally in this broad area John Runions (Oxford Brookes) and colleagues show that attachment to the cell wall is critical for correct function of the dynamic actin filament network. Elsewhere Jerry Roberts (CPIB) leads a study that looks at proteins that control floral development. Next the group of Alexander Jones at SLCU has developed an exciting new tool that allows for in vivo visualization of the plant hormone GA. Finally the lab of Phil Wigge (also at SLCU) further expands their work that dissects the signaling pathways that controlling the response to temperature.
Carter R, Woolfenden H, Baillie A, Amsbury S, Carroll S, Healicon E, Sovatzoglou S, Braybrook S, Gray JE, Hobbs J, Morris RJ, Fleming AJ (2017) Stomatal Opening Involves Polar, Not Radial, Stiffening Of Guard Cells. Curr Biol. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.08.006 Open Access
This broad UK collaboration is led by Andrew Fleming at the University of Sheffield and looks into the factors that control stiffening of cell walls in stomatal guard cells. They use Atomic Force Microscopy to show that stiffening of the polar regions of guard cell walls pins down these ends of cells during stomatal opening. This study provides exciting new insights into the importance of cell wall dynamics on stomatal opening and likely has significant agronomic importance.
Grantham NJ, Wurman-Rodrich J, Terrett OM, Lyczakowski JJ, Stott K, Iuga D, Simmons TJ, Durand-Tardif M, Brown SP, Dupree R, Busse-Wicher M, Dupree P (2017) An even pattern of xylan substitution is critical for interaction with cellulose in plant cell walls. Nat Plants doi: 10.1038/s41477-017-0030-8
Lyczakowski JJ,,, Wicher KB,, Terrett OM, Faria-Blanc N, Yu X, Brown D,, Krogh KBRM, Dupree P,,, Busse-Wicher M (2017) Removal of glucuronic acid from xylan is a strategy to improve the conversion of plant biomass to sugars for bioenergy. Biotechnol Biofuels. doi: 10.1186/s13068-017-0902-1
Open Access
Paul Dupree (University of Cambridge) is involved in two papers that investigate the chemical decorations that adorn components of the plant cell wall. In the first paper they demonstrate that the incorrect addition of acetyl esters onto xylan prevents the formation of the secondary cell wall due to a reduced interaction between xylan and cellulose microfibrils. They undertake a genetic study to show that the ESKIMO1/XOAT1/TBL29, a xylan-specific O-acetyltransferase is responsive for correct attachment of acetyl esters to xylan.
In the second paper they show that a reduction in the attachment of the acetyl ester glucuronic acid to xylan allows increased isolation of ethanol following saccharification. This has enormous potential significance in ongoing attempts to generate lignocellulose biomass that is more amenable to conversion into potential biofuels.
Tolmie F, Poulet A, McKenna J, Sassmann S, Graumann K, Deeks M, Runions J (2017) The cell wall of Arabidopsis thaliana influences actin network dynamics. J Exp Bot. doi: 10.1093/jxb/erx269.
This collaboration between Oxford Brookes and Exeter Universities looks in details at the Arabidopsis actin filament network using a set of novel imaging tools. In addition they show that the network is distributed when the link to the cell wall is disrupted. As might be expected this also effects the function of the network as evidenced by changes in Golgi body motility.
González-Carranza ZH, Zhang X, Peters JL, Boltz V, Szecsi J, Bendahmane M, Roberts JA (2017) HAWAIIAN SKIRT controls size and floral organ number by modulating CUC1 and CUC2 expression. PLoS One.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185106 Open Access
Jerry Roberts (CPIB, Nottingham) leads a collaboration with Dutch and French colleagues to investigate the role of the F-box gene HAWAIIAN SKIRT in control of flower development. This protein acts by interacting with the CUC-SHAPED COTYLEDON 1 (CUC1) and CUC2 transcription factors to restrict petal size by altering cell proliferation and mitotic growth.
Rizza A, Walia A, Lanquar V, Frommer WB, Jones AM (2017) In vivo gibberellin gradients visualized in rapidly elongating tissues. Nat Plants. doi: 10.1038/s41477-017-0021-9
Free with the link: rdcu.be/wnOh
Alexander Jones (SLCU) collaborates with Wolf Frommers’ lab in Stanford to develop a novel tool to analyse the plant hormone gibberellin in planta. This optogenetic biosensor protein allowed them to show that GA levels correlate with cell length in hypocotyl and root tissues. GA levels are dependent on PIF signalling in a relationship that controls rapid tissue elongation in reponse to favourable environmental conditions. We’re pleased to announce that Alexander will be speaking at next September’s GARNet2018: A Plant Science Showcase at the University of York.
Cortijo S, Charoensawan V, Brestovitsky A, Buning R, Ravarani C, Rhodes D, van Noort J, Jaeger KE, Wigge PA (2017) Transcriptional regulation of the ambient temperature response by H2A.Z-nucleosomes and HSF1 transcription factors in Arabidopsis. Molecular Plant doi: 10.1016/j.molp.2017.08.014
Open Access
Phil Wigge (SLCU) leads this work that investigates how the temperature responsive histone variant H2A.Z interacts with heat shock transcription factors (HSFs). They find that the activity of HSFs is able to evict H2A.Z histones yet at non-inducible temperatures these heat responsive genes show an over-representation of H2A.Z-nucleosomes. They demonstrate that this relationship allows plants to be primed to rapidly response to temperature change whilst preventing leaky transcription in times of low temperature.
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