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Temperature shift coordinately changes the activity and the methylation state of transposon Tam3 in Antirrhinum majus

Shin-nosuke Hashida1, Ken Kitamura, Tetsuo Mikami

  • 1Laboratories of Genetic Engineering, Graduate School of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 060-8589, Japan.

Plant Physiology
|July 15, 2003
PubMed

Insights

Temperature controls Tam3 transposon activity in Antirrhinum majus. Lower temperatures increase Tam3 transposition by reducing DNA methylation, though other factors also regulate this process.

Area of Science:

  • Genetics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Epigenetics

Background:

  • The Tam3 transposon in Antirrhinum majus exhibits temperature-dependent transposition, a unique characteristic among cut-and-paste transposons.
  • Transposition frequency is significantly lower at 25°C compared to 15°C.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mechanism underlying the low-temperature-dependent transposition (LTDT) of Tam3.
  • To determine if transcriptional or posttranscriptional regulation controls LTDT.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of Tam3 transposition rates at different temperatures.
  • Examination of DNA methylation patterns associated with Tam3 sequences.
  • Investigating gene expression of the Tam3 TPase gene under varying temperatures.

Main Results:

  • LTDT is unlikely to be regulated by transcriptional or posttranscriptional control of the Tam3 TPase gene.
  • Temperature shifts induce reversible changes in the methylation state of Tam3 sequences.
  • Higher temperatures lead to hypermethylation, while lower temperatures result in hypomethylation of Tam3 sequences.

Conclusions:

  • DNA methylation is closely linked to the LTDT of Tam3.
  • While DNA methylation plays a role, secondary factors are also involved in repressing Tam3 transposition at higher temperatures.

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