19. 3. 2024

Splice isoforms in plants - auxin pathways meet mRNA unknowns

Dr. rer. nat. Kamil Růžička

(Institute of Experimental Botany, CAS)

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Plant hormone auxin is an essential, well-studied developmental regulator. In contrast, alternative splicing (AS) represents a highly intricate yet underexplored layer of gene expression in plants. Hence, auxin pathways can serve as a suitable model system to study the role of AS. We have recently revealed how AS changes the properties of auxin transporter PIN7, which controls plant tropic response by modulating auxin accumulation inside the responsive cells. PIN7 produces two splice isoforms, PIN7a and PIN7b. They differ in capability to maintain auxin gradients in Arabidopsis. Moreover, they interact and mutually influence each other’s stability on the plasma membrane, thereby controlling Arabidopsis gravity sensing, among other developmental processes. Interestingly, AS of PIN7 is among very few AS events that have been satisfactorily demonstrated to (i) be translated and (ii) carry a detectable physiological role. Together with our complementary work, our findings implicate several intriguing points about the evolution and functional relevance of AS in plants.

CV of the speaker HERE.