ARABIDOPSIS HYBRIDS

Analysis of Arabidopsis hybrid incompatibilities

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'While the discovery of hybrid vigor was one of the most important breakthroughs in modern agriculture, failure of many wide crosses limits the beneficial traits that can be introduced into crops. My goal is to understand the molecular and biochemical basis of hybrid incompatibility within, and also between, species. My first focus will be to characterize a particularly interesting incompatibility (identified in the laboratory of Prof. Weigel), in which offspring develop ectopic outgrowths (tumoring) on leaf petioles. The model will be a cross between two Arabidopsis thaliana accessions (strains) from Spain and Tajikistan. Preliminary results suggest that this example of severe negative epistasis is caused by an interaction between two alleles of a disease resistance (R) protein. Once confirmed, I will characterize the interaction at the protein level by domain-swapping and mutagenesis to determine the biochemical mechanisms of the deleterious interaction. A second, more speculative focus will be to assess the effect of intra- and inter-specific hybrid formation on genomic regulation through RNA silencing. I will do this by deep sequencing of the sRNA and transcriptome complements of intra- and inter-specific hybrids in the Arabidopsis genus. The resultant data will be analysed for occurrence of novel sRNAs in hybrid progeny, correlating with down regulation of transcription from the cognate genes or vice versa. Further experiments will be decided on the basis of these initial results and are anticipated to include profiling of DNA methylation at genomic intervals of interest, and analysis of the effects of knock down of RNA silencing pathways on hybrid formation and gene regulation. The two aspects of the proposed work are linked in that they aim to further understanding of hybrid genetic interactions that have been proposed to affect diverse biological phenomena from disease to speciation.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

The ability to cross-breed genetically different plants is a significant advance in modern agriculture. Resolving incompatibility issues, however, is key to taking advantage of hybrid vigour.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

Although hybrid vigour has much to offer agriculture, there is still great untapped potential as long as incompatibility is not better understood. The failure of many plant crosses limits the applications it can be used for.

The 'Analysis of Arabidopsis hybrid incompatibilities' (Arabidopsis hybrids) project set out to make it possible to introduce the widest possible range of valuable features into crops. The EU-funded project consisted of two sub-projects and worked to understand the molecular and biochemical basis of hybrid incompatibility within as well as between species.

The first step was to characterise an incompatibility that was identified, where offspring develop ectopic outgrowths on leaf petioles. The model used was a cross between two Arabidopsis thaliana strains from Spain and Tajikistan. Initial results suggested that this example of severe negative epistasis is due to an interaction between two alleles of a disease resistance (R) protein. The project sought to characterise the interaction at the protein level by domain-swapping and mutagenesis, unravelling the mechanisms behind the adverse interaction.

The second sub-project focused on the effects of intra- and inter-specific hybrid formation on genomic regulation through RNA silencing. Hybrids in the Arabidopsis genus were to be used. The assumption is that changes in small RNA populations in hybrids contribute to a misregulation of genes, which results in hybrid incompatibility. However, bioinformatic analysis of the data has proven to be challenging as the study involves genomes that have not been fully sequenced. Data has been shared with other relevant research groups in order to offer maximum benefit from this project's achievements.