Related Experiment Videos
Plants, pairing and phenotypes--two's company?
Robert T Grant-Downton1, Hugh G Dickinson
1Department of Plant Sciences, South Parks Rd, Oxford OX1 3RB, UK. robert.grant-downton@plants.ox.ac.uk
Trends in Genetics : TIG
|March 26, 2004
Summary
Plant gene expression may be epigenetically regulated by chromosome pairing, not just RNA. This pairing-based system could explain phenomena like paramutation and hybrid phenotypes.
Area of Science:
- Plant molecular biology
- Epigenetics
- Genomics
Background:
- RNA-based networks regulate gene expression and repress viral sequences in plants.
- Epigenetic gene regulation beyond non-coding RNAs is being explored.
- Chromosome pairing is known to mediate epigenetic information transfer in other organisms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore evidence for epigenetic gene regulation through chromosome pairing in plants.
- To propose a model where physical pairing of homologous sequences facilitates epigenetic communication.
- To connect this pairing-based system to observed plant phenomena.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing evidence for homologous pairing in plants.
- Theoretical consideration of epigenetic information transfer between paired sequences.
- Analysis of plant phenomena potentially explained by pairing-based epigenetic regulation.
Main Results:
- Evidence suggests homologous pairing occurs in plants, potentially mediating epigenetic regulation.
- Paramutation is presented as an example of a broader pairing-based gene expression system.
- Mounting evidence supports the role of homologous pairing in plants.
Conclusions:
- Chromosome pairing may represent a significant epigenetic regulatory mechanism in plants.
- Understanding pairing interactions can illuminate phenomena like endosperm imprinting and hybrid vigor.
- This pairing-based epigenetic communication offers a new perspective on plant gene regulation.