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Updated: Nov 30, 2025

Screening and Identification of RNA Silencing Suppressors from Secreted Effectors of Plant Pathogens
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Non-coding RNA polymerases that silence transposable elements and reprogram gene expression in plants.

Bart Rymen1, Laura Ferrafiat1, Todd Blevins1

  • 1Institut de biologie moléculaire des plantes, Université de Strasbourg , Strasbourg, France.

Transcription
|November 12, 2020
PubMed
Summary

Plant RNA polymerases IV and V (Pol IV/V) evolved from Pol II to produce regulatory RNAs. They are key to RNA-directed DNA methylation, controlling gene expression and plant evolution.

Keywords:
RNA polymerase IV (Pol IV)RNA-directed DNA Methylationnon-coding RNAplant gene regulationtransposable elements

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Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics
  • Plant Science

Background:

  • Multisubunit RNA polymerases (Pol) are essential for eukaryotic gene expression.
  • Plants possess specialized Pol IV and Pol V enzymes, derived from Pol II, for non-coding RNA production.
  • These enzymes are central to RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM), a pathway repressing transposable elements and genes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the evolution of Pol IV and Pol V from ancestral Pol II.
  • To understand the role of Pol IV/V in non-coding RNA biogenesis and gene regulation.
  • To explore the impact of Pol IV-RdDM on plant development and evolution.

Main Methods:

  • Genetic and biochemical analyses of Pol IV/V subunits.
  • Studying RNA-directed DNA methylation pathways.
  • Comparative analysis across plant taxa and crop species.

Main Results:

  • Pol IV and Pol V evolved from Pol II to produce regulatory RNAs for RdDM.
  • RdDM mediated by Pol IV/V silences transposable elements and specific genes.
  • Pol IV-RdDM influences flowering time, development, stress responses, and pathogen interactions.
  • Pol IV target genes are species-specific, showing rapid evolutionary dynamics.
  • Transposable element dynamics and Pol IV targeting reprogram gene expression in crops.

Conclusions:

  • Pol IV and Pol V represent a plant-specific expansion of the RNA polymerase family.
  • The RdDM pathway, orchestrated by Pol IV/V, is crucial for genome stability and adaptation.
  • Evolutionary changes in Pol IV targeting contribute to species-specific gene regulation and phenotypic diversity.