TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ud-Din, Aziz
A1  - Rauf, Mamoona
A1  - Ghafoor, S.
A1  - Khattak, M. N. K.
A1  - Hameed, M. W.
A1  - Shah, H.
A1  - Jan, S.
A1  - Muhammad, K.
A1  - Rehman, A.
A1  - Inamullah, 
T1  - Efficient use of artificial micro-RNA to downregulate the expression of genes at the post-transcriptional level in Arabidopsis thaliana
JF  - Genetics and molecular research
N2  - Micro-RNAs are cellular components regulating gene expression at the post-transcription level. In the present study, artificial micro-RNAs were used to decrease the transcript level of two genes, AtExpA8 (encoding an expansin) and AHL25 (encoding an AT-hook motif nuclear localized protein) in Arabidopsis thaliana. The backbone of the Arabidopsis endogenous MIR319a micro-RNA was used in a site-directed mutagenesis approach for the generation of artificial micro-RNAs targeting two genes. The recombinant cassettes were expressed under the control of the CaMV 35S promoter in individual A. thaliana plants. Transgenic lines of the third generation were tested by isolating total RNA and by subsequent cDNA synthesis using oligo-dT18 primers and mRNAs as templates. The expression of the two target genes was checked through quantitative realtime polymerase chain reaction to confirm reduced transcript levels for AtExpA8 and AHL25. Downregulation of AtExpA8 resulted in the formation of short hypocotyls compared with those of the wild-type control in response to low pH and high salt concentration. This technology could be used to prevent the expression of exogenous and invading genes posing a threat to the normal cellular physiology of the host plant.
KW  - Artificial micro-RNA
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
KW  - qRT-PCR
KW  - AtExpA8
KW  - AHL25
Y1  - 2016
U6  - https://doi.org/10.4238/gmr.15027439
SN  - 1676-5680
VL  - 15
PB  - FUNPEC
CY  - Ribeirao Preto
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Rauf, Mamoona
A1  - Arif, Muhammad
A1  - Dortay, Hakan
A1  - Matallana-Ramirez, Lilian P.
A1  - Waters, Mark T.
A1  - Nam, Hong Gil
A1  - Lim, Pyung-Ok
A1  - Müller-Röber, Bernd
A1  - Balazadeh, Salma
T1  - ORE1 balances leaf senescence against maintenance by antagonizing G2-like-mediated transcription
JF  - EMBO reports
N2  - Leaf senescence is a key physiological process in all plants. Its onset is tightly controlled by transcription factors, of which NAC factor ORE1 (ANAC092) is crucial in Arabidopsis thaliana. Enhanced expression of ORE1 triggers early senescence by controlling a downstream gene network that includes various senescence-associated genes. Here, we report that unexpectedly ORE1 interacts with the G2-like transcription factors GLK1 and GLK2, which are important for chloroplast development and maintenance, and thereby for leaf maintenance. ORE1 antagonizes GLK transcriptional activity, shifting the balance from chloroplast maintenance towards deterioration. Our finding identifies a new mechanism important for the control of senescence by ORE1.
KW  - transcription factor
KW  - senescence
KW  - chloroplast
KW  - protein-protein interaction
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/embor.2013.24
SN  - 1469-221X
VL  - 14
IS  - 4
SP  - 382
EP  - 388
PB  - Nature Publ. Group
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Matallana-Ramirez, Lilian P.
A1  - Rauf, Mamoona
A1  - Farage-Barhom, Sarit
A1  - Dortay, Hakan
A1  - Xue, Gang-Ping
A1  - Droege-Laser, Wolfgang
A1  - Lers, Amnon
A1  - Balazadeh, Salma
A1  - Müller-Röber, Bernd
T1  - NAC Transcription Factor ORE1 and Senescence-Induced BIFUNCTIONAL NUCLEASE1 (BFN1) Constitute a Regulatory Cascade in Arabidopsis
JF  - Molecular plant
N2  - The NAC transcription factor ORE1 is a key regulator of senescence in Arabidopsis thaliana. Here, we demonstrate that senescence-induced and cell death-associated BIFUNCTIONAL NUCLEASE1 (BFN1) is a direct downstream target of ORE1, revealing a previously unknown regulatory cascade.Senescence is a highly regulated process that involves the action of a large number of transcription factors. The NAC transcription factor ORE1 (ANAC092) has recently been shown to play a critical role in positively controlling senescence in Arabidopsis thaliana; however, no direct target gene through which it exerts its molecular function has been identified previously. Here, we report that BIFUNCTIONAL NUCLEASE1 (BFN1), a well-known senescence-enhanced gene, is directly regulated by ORE1. We detected elevated expression of BFN1 already 2 h after induction of ORE1 in estradiol-inducible ORE1 overexpression lines and 6 h after transfection of Arabidopsis mesophyll cell protoplasts with a 35S:ORE1 construct. ORE1 and BFN1 expression patterns largely overlap, as shown by promoterreporter gene (GUS) fusions, while BFN1 expression in senescent leaves and the abscission zones of maturing flower organs was virtually absent in ore1 mutant background. In vitro binding site assays revealed a bipartite ORE1 binding site, similar to that of ORS1, a paralog of ORE1. A bipartite ORE1 binding site was identified in the BFN1 promoter; mutating the cis-element within the context of the full-length BFN1 promoter drastically reduced ORE1-mediated transactivation capacity in transiently transfected Arabidopsis mesophyll cell protoplasts. Furthermore, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) demonstrates in vivo binding of ORE1 to the BFN1 promoter. We also demonstrate binding of ORE1 in vivo to the promoters of two other senescence-associated genes, namely SAG29/SWEET15 and SINA1, supporting the central role of ORE1 during senescence.
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
KW  - senescence
KW  - transcription factor
KW  - ORE1
KW  - BFN1
KW  - promoter
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1093/mp/sst012
SN  - 1674-2052
VL  - 6
IS  - 5
SP  - 1438
EP  - 1452
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Rauf, Mamoona
A1  - Arif, Muhammad
A1  - Fisahn, Joachim
A1  - Xue, Gang-Ping
A1  - Balazadeh, Salma
A1  - Müller-Röber, Bernd
T1  - NAC transcription factor speedy hyponastic growth regulates flooding-induced leaf movement in arabidopsis
JF  - The plant cell
N2  - In rosette plants, root flooding (waterlogging) triggers rapid upward (hyponastic) leaf movement representing an important architectural stress response that critically determines plant performance in natural habitats. The directional growth is based on localized longitudinal cell expansion at the lower (abaxial) side of the leaf petiole and involves the volatile phytohormone ethylene (ET). We report the existence of a transcriptional core unit underlying directional petiole growth in Arabidopsis thaliana, governed by the NAC transcription factor SPEEDY HYPONASTIC GROWTH (SHYG). Overexpression of SHYG in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana enhances waterlogging-triggered hyponastic leaf movement and cell expansion in abaxial cells of the basal petiole region, while both responses are largely diminished in shyg knockout mutants. Expression of several EXPANSIN and XYLOGLUCAN ENDOTRANSGLYCOSYLASE/HYDROLASE genes encoding cell wall-loosening proteins was enhanced in SHYG overexpressors but lowered in shyg. We identified ACC OXIDASE5 (ACO5), encoding a key enzyme of ET biosynthesis, as a direct transcriptional output gene of SHYG and found a significantly reduced leaf movement in response to root flooding in aco5 T-DNA insertion mutants. Expression of SHYG in shoot tissue is triggered by root flooding and treatment with ET, constituting an intrinsic ET-SHYG-ACO5 activator loop for rapid petiole cell expansion upon waterlogging.
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.113.117861
SN  - 1040-4651
SN  - 1532-298X
VL  - 25
IS  - 12
SP  - 4941
EP  - 4955
PB  - American Society of Plant Physiologists
CY  - Rockville
ER  - 
TY  - THES
A1  - Rauf, Mamoona
T1  - Exploring the gene regulatory networks of the NAC transcription factors SHYG and ORE1 in Arabidopsis thaliana
Y1  - 2012
CY  - Potsdam
ER  -