MTA, an RNA m6A Methyltransferase, Enhances Drought Tolerance by Regulating the Development of Trichomes and Roots in Poplar

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent internal modification present in the mRNAs of all higher eukaryotes, where it is present within both coding and noncoding regions. In mammals, methylation requires the catalysis of a multicomponent m6A methyltransferase complex. Proposed biological func...

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Published in:International journal of molecular sciences 2020-04, Vol.21 (7), p.2462
Main Authors: Lu, Liang, Zhang, Yan, He, Qizouhong, Qi, Zengxing, Zhang, Geng, Xu, Wenchao, Yi, Tao, Wu, Gangning, Li, Ruili
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Binding sites
Catalysis
Cell fate
Drought
Drought resistance
drought tolerance
Embryogenesis
Embryos
Eukaryotes
Localization
Mammals
Methylation
methyltransferase
Microscopy
mRNA stability
N6-methyladenosine
Poplar
Proteins
RNA modification
root system
Roots
Splicing
Transgenic plants
Trichomes
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Summary:N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most prevalent internal modification present in the mRNAs of all higher eukaryotes, where it is present within both coding and noncoding regions. In mammals, methylation requires the catalysis of a multicomponent m6A methyltransferase complex. Proposed biological functions for m6A modification include pre-mRNA splicing, RNA stability, cell fate regulation, and embryonic development. However, few studies have been conducted on m6A modification in trees. In particular, the regulation mechanism of RNA m6A in Populus development remains to be further elucidated. Here, we show that PtrMTA (Populus trichocarpa methyltransferase) was colocalized with PtrFIP37 in the nucleus. Importantly, the PtrMTA-overexpressing plants significantly increased the density of trichomes and exhibited a more developed root system than that of wild-type controls. Moreover, we found that PtrMTA-overexpressing plants had better tolerance to drought stress. We also found PtrMTA was a component of the m6A methyltransferase complex, which participated in the formation of m6A methylation in poplar. Taken together, these results demonstrate that PtrMTA is involved in drought resistance by affecting the development of trichomes and roots, which will provide new clues for the study of RNA m6A modification and expand our understanding of the epigenetic molecular mechanism in woody plants.
ISSN:1422-0067
1661-6596
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms21072462