The long non-coding RNA ARES modulates Arabidopsis root architecture via the auxin response

Plants must adapt to changing environmental conditions for survival and reproduction. Notably, they achieve this by adjusting their root architecture (root number and length), optimizing water and nutrient absorption. This complex process is governed by a network of key root regulatory genes. Long non-coding RNAs have been shown to regulate the expression of other genes, and some to be involved in the control of root architecture.

In a study to be published in IUBMB Life, researchers from IPS2 (Team REGARN) and their collaborators from the “Instituto de Agrobiotecnología del Litoral in Argentina” (Team Epilab), have identified the lncRNA ARES (AUXIN REGULATOR ELEMENT DOWNSTREAM SOLITARY ROOT) located downstream of the lateral root master regulator SOLITARY ROOT (SLR). Interestingly, while ARES and SLR are co-regulated during root development and auxin responses, alterations in ARES did not affect SLR expression. Instead, it affects the expression of its other neighboring gene NF-YB3, which impact on root development is not known, as well as the expression and splicing of a subset of genes related to lateral root development and root growth. In agreement, the down-regulation of ARES resulted in a lateral root developmental phenotype. Thus, the lncRNA ARES emerges as a novel regulator of auxin-dependent lateral root development, likely by modulating the expression of lateral root-related genes to be discovered.

24/11/2023