Parental age affects somatic mutation rates in the progeny of flowering plants

Persistence of parental age effect on somatic mutation rates across generations in Arabidopsis

In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, parental age is known to affect somatic mutation rates in their immediate progeny and here we show that this age dependent effect persists across successive generations. Using a set of detector lines carrying the mutated uidA gene, we examined if a particular parental age maintained across five consecutive generations affected the rates of base substitution (BSR), intrachromosomal recombination (ICR), frameshift mutation (FS), and transposition. The frequency of functional GUS reversions were assessed in seedlings as a function of identical/different parental ages across generations. In the context of a fixed parental age, BSR/ICR rates were unaffected in the first three generations, then dropped significantly in the 4th and increased in most instances in the 5th generation (e.g. BSR (F1 38 = 0.9, F2 38 = 1.14, F3 38 = 1.02, F4 38 = 0.5, F5 38 = 0.76)). On the other hand, with advancing parental ages, BSR/ICR rates remained high in the first two/three generations, with a striking resemblance in the pattern of mutation rates (BSR (F1 38 = 0.9, F1 43 = 0.53, F1 48 = 0.79, F1 53 = 0.83 and F2 38 = 1.14, F2 43 = 0.57, F2 48 = 0.64, F2 53 = 0.94). We adopted a novel approach of identifying and tagging flowers pollinated on a particular day, thereby avoiding biases due to potential emasculation induced stress responses. Our results suggest a time component in counting the number of generations a plant has passed through self-fertilization at a particular age in determining the somatic mutation rates.

Accumulation of somatic mutations leads to genetic mosaicism in cannabis

Cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.) is typically propagated using stem cuttings taken from mother plants to produce genetically uniform propagules. However, producers anecdotally report that clonal lines deteriorate over time and eventually produce clones with less vigor and lower cannabinoid levels than the original mother plant. While the cause of this deterioration has not been investigated, one potential contributor is the accumulation of somatic mutations within the plant. To test this, we used deep sequencing of whole genomes (>50×) to compare the variability within an individual cannabis cultivar Honey Banana plant sampled at the bottom, middle, and top. We called over six million sequence variants based on a reference genome and found that the top had the most by a sizable amount. Comparing the variants among the samples uncovered that nearly 600,000 (34%) were unique to the top while the bottom only contained 148,000 (12%), and middle with 77,000 (9%) unique variants. Bioinformatics tools were used to identify mutations in critical cannabinoid-terpene biosynthesis pathways. While none were identified as high impact, four genes contained more than double the average level of nucleotide diversity (π) in or near the gene. Two genes code for essential enzymes required for the cannabinoid pathway while the other two are in the terpene pathways, demonstrating that mutations were accumulating within these pathways and could influence their function. Overall, a measurable number of intraplant genetic diversity was discovered that could impact long-term genetic fidelity of clonal lines and potentially contribute to the observed decline in vigor and cannabinoid content.

Levels of Heterochiasmy During Arabidopsis Development as Reported by Fluorescent Tagged Lines

Crossing over, the exchange of DNA between the chromosomes during meiosis, contributes significantly to genetic variation. The rate of crossovers (CO) varies depending upon the taxon, population, age, external conditions, and also, sometimes, between the sexes, a phenomenon called heterochiasmy. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the male rate of all crossover events (mCO) is typically nearly double the female rate (fCO). A previous, PCR-based genotyping study has reported that the disparity decreases with increasing parental age, because fCO rises while mCO remains stable. We revisited this topic using a fluorescent tagged lines approach to examine how heterochiasmy responded to parental age in eight genomic intervals distributed across the organism’s five chromosomes. We determined recombination frequency for, on average, more than 2000 seeds, for each interval, for each of four age groups, to estimate sex-specific CO rates. mCO did not change with age, as reported previously, but, here, fCO did not rise, and thus the levels of heterochiasmy were unchanged. We can see no methodological reason to doubt that our results reflect the underlying biology of the accessions we studied. The lack of response to age could perhaps be due to previously reported variation in CO rate among accessions of Arabidopsis.

CSN5A Subunit of COP9 Signalosome Temporally Buffers Response to Heat in Arabidopsis

The COP9 (constitutive photomorphogenesis 9) signalosome (CSN) is an evolutionarily conserved protein complex which regulates various growth and developmental processes. However, the role of CSN during environmental stress is largely unknown. Using Arabidopsis as model organism, we used CSN hypomorphic mutants to study the role of the CSN in plant responses to environmental stress and found that heat stress specifically enhanced the growth of csn5a-1 but not the growth of other hypomorphic photomorphogenesis mutants tested. Following heat stress, csn5a-1 exhibits an increase in cell size, ploidy, photosynthetic activity, and number of lateral roots and an upregulation of genes connected to the auxin response. Immunoblot analysis revealed an increase in deneddylation of CUL1 but not CUL3 following heat stress in csn5a-1, implicating improved CUL1 activity as a basis for the improved growth of csn5a-1 following heat stress. Studies using DR5::N7-VENUS and DII-VENUS reporter constructs confirm that the heat-induced growth is due to an increase in auxin signaling. Our results indicate that CSN5A has a specific role in deneddylation of CUL1 and that CSN5A is required for the recovery of AUX/IAA repressor levels following recurrent heat stress to regulate auxin homeostasis in Arabidopsis.

Brief temperature stress during reproductive stages alters meiotic recombination and somatic mutation rates in the progeny of Arabidopsis

BACKGROUND

Plants exposed to environmental stresses draw upon many genetic and epigenetic strategies, with the former sometimes modulated by the latter. This can help the plant, and its immediate progeny, at least, to better endure the stress. Some evidence has led to proposals that (epi) genetic changes can be both selective and sustainably heritable, while other evidence suggests that changes are effectively stochastic, and important only because they induce genetic variation. One type of stress with an arguably high level of stochasticity in its effects is temperature stress. Studies of how heat and cold affect the rates of meiotic recombination (MR) and somatic mutations (SMs, which are potentially heritable in plants) report increases, decreases, or no effect. Collectively, they do not point to any consistent patterns. Some of this variability, however, might arise from the stress being applied for such an extended time, typically days or weeks. Here, we adopted a targeted approach by (1) limiting exposure to one hour; and (2) timing it to coincide with (a) gamete, and early gametophyte, development, a period of high stress sensitivity; and (b) a late stage of vegetative development.

RESULTS

For plants (Arabidopsis thaliana) otherwise grown at 22 °C, we measured the effects of a 1 h exposure to cold (12 °C) or heat (32 °C) on the rates of MR, and four types of SMs (frameshift mutations; intrachromosomal recombination; base substitutions; transpositions) in the F1 progeny. One parent (wild type) was stressed, the other (unstressed) carried a genetic event detector. When rates were compared to those in progeny of control (both parents unstressed) two patterns emerged. In the progeny of younger plants (stressed at 36 days; pollinated at 40 days) heat and cold either had no effect (on MR) or (for SMs) had effects that were rare and stochastic. In the progeny of older plants (stressed at 41 days; pollinated at 45 days), while effects were also infrequent, those that were seen followed a consistent pattern: rates of all five genetic events were lowest at 12 °C and highest at 32 °C, i.e. they varied in a "dose-response" manner. This pattern was strongest (or, in the case of MR, only apparent) in progeny whose stressed parent was female.

CONCLUSION

While the infrequency of effects suggests the need for cautious inference, the consistency of responses in the progeny of older plants, indicate that in some circumstances the level of stochasticity in inherited genetic responses to heat or cold stress can be context-dependent, possibly reflecting life-cycle stages in the parental generation that are variably stress sensitive.

Senescence: Is It Universal or Not?

Both demographic and physiological senescence have been demonstrated to occur in various organisms. However, indeterminate growers, such as some animals and most perennial plants, seem to escape the wear and tear of aging. Indeed, most angiosperms show no signs of senescence, and both negligible and negative senescence (improved physiological performance with aging) have been reported in perennial plants growing in their natural habitat. In this opinion article, I review recent developments in the study of senescence in perennial plants and propose that continuous growth prevents senescence. I also address the question whether senescence is a universal process.

Suppression of different classes of somatic mutations in Arabidopsis by vir gene-expressing Agrobacterium strains

BACKGROUND

Agrobacterium infection, which is widely used to generate transgenic plants, is often accompanied by T-DNA-linked mutations and transpositions in flowering plants. It is not known if Agrobacterium infection also affects the rates of point mutations, somatic homologous recombinations (SHR) and frame-shift mutations (FSM). We examined the effects of Agrobacterium infection on five types of somatic mutations using a set of mutation detector lines of Arabidopsis thaliana. To verify the effect of secreted factors, we exposed the plants to different Agrobacterium strains, including wild type (Ach5), its derivatives lacking vir genes, oncogenes or T-DNA, and the heat-killed form for 48 h post-infection; also, for a smaller set of strains, we examined the rates of three types of mutations at multiple time-points. The mutation detector lines carried a non-functional β-glucuronidase gene (GUS) and a reversion of mutated GUS to its functional form resulted in blue spots. Based on the number of blue spots visible in plants grown for a further two weeks, we estimated the mutation frequencies.

RESULTS

For plants co-cultivated for 48 h with Agrobacterium, if the strain contained vir genes, then the rates of transversions, SHRs and FSMs (measured 2 weeks later) were lower than those of uninfected controls. In contrast, co-cultivation for 48 h with any of the Agrobacterium strains raised the transposition rates above control levels. The multiple time-point study showed that in seedlings co-cultivated with wild type Ach5, the reduced rates of transversions and SHRs after 48 h co-cultivation represent an apparent suppression of an earlier short-lived increase in mutation rates (peaking for plants co-cultivated for 3 h). An increase after 3 h co-cultivation was also seen for rates of transversions (but not SHR) in seedlings exposed to the strain lacking vir genes, oncogenes and T-DNA. However, the mutation rates in plants co-cultivated for longer times with this strain subsequently dropped below levels seen in uninfected controls, consistent with the results of the single time-point study.

CONCLUSIONS

The rates of various classes of mutations that result from Agrobacterium infection depend upon the duration of infection and the type of pathogen derived factors (such as Vir proteins, oncoproteins or T-DNA) possessed by the strain. Strains with vir genes, including the type used for plant transformation, suppressed selected classes of somatic mutations. Our study also provides evidence of a pathogen that can at least partly counter the induction of mutations in an infected plant.