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- Title
MicroRNA-Mediated Responses to Cadmium Stress in Arabidopsis thaliana.
- Authors
Pegler, Joseph L.; Oultram, Jackson M. J.; Nguyen, Duc Quan; Grof, Christopher P. L.; Eamens, Andrew L.
- Abstract
In recent decades, the presence of cadmium (Cd) in the environment has increased significantly due to anthropogenic activities. Cd is taken up from the soil by plant roots for its subsequent translocation to shoots. However, Cd is a non-essential heavy metal and is therefore toxic to plants when it over-accumulates. MicroRNA (miRNA)-directed gene expression regulation is central to the response of a plant to Cd stress. Here, we document the miRNA-directed response of wild-type Arabidopsis thaliana (Arabidopsis) plants and the drb1, drb2 and drb4 mutant lines to Cd stress. Phenotypic and physiological analyses revealed the drb1 mutant to display the highest degree of tolerance to the imposed stress while the drb2 mutant was the most sensitive. RT-qPCR-based molecular profiling of miRNA abundance and miRNA target gene expression revealed DRB1 to be the primary double-stranded RNA binding (DRB) protein required for the production of six of the seven Cd-responsive miRNAs analyzed. However, DRB2, and not DRB1, was determined to be required for miR396 production. RT-qPCR further inferred that transcript cleavage was the RNA silencing mechanism directed by each assessed miRNA to control miRNA target gene expression. Taken together, the results presented here reveal the complexity of the miRNA-directed molecular response of Arabidopsis to Cd stress.
- Subjects
ARABIDOPSIS thaliana; DOUBLE-stranded RNA; PHYTOCHELATINS; GENETIC regulation; CADMIUM; ARABIDOPSIS; POISONOUS plants
- Publication
Plants (2223-7747), 2021, Vol 10, Issue 1, p130
- ISSN
2223-7747
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/plants10010130