Regulation of FT splicing by an endogenous cue in temperate grasses

Zhengrui Qin, Jiajie Wu, Shuaifeng Geng, Nan Feng, Fengjuan Chen, Xingchen Kong, Gaoyuan Song, Kai Chen, Aili Li, Long Mao () and Liang Wu ()
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Zhengrui Qin: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Jiajie Wu: State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University
Shuaifeng Geng: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Nan Feng: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Fengjuan Chen: State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University
Xingchen Kong: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Gaoyuan Song: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Kai Chen: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Aili Li: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Long Mao: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Liang Wu: National Key Facility for Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Institute of Crop Science, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Appropriate flowering timing is crucial for plant reproductive success. The florigen, FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT), interacts with 14-3-3 proteins and the bZIP transcription factor FD, functioning at core nodes in multiple flowering pathways. There are two FT homologues, FT1 and FT2, in Brachypodium distachyon. Here we show that FT2 undergoes age-dependent alternative splicing (AS), resulting in two splice variants (FT2α and FT2β). The FT2β-encoded protein cannot interact with FD or 14-3-3s but is able to form heterodimers with FT2α and FT1, thereby interfering with the florigen-mediated assembly of the flowering initiation complex. Notably, transgenic plants overproducing FT2β exhibit delayed flowering, while transgenic plants in which FT2β is silenced by an artificial microRNA display accelerated flowering, demonstrating a dominant-negative role of FT2β in flowering induction. Furthermore, we show that the AS splicing of FT2 is conserved in important cereal crops, such as barley and wheat. Collectively, these findings reveal a novel posttranscriptional mode of FT regulation in temperate grasses.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14320

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