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HomeNewsA New Study Shows That Plants Talk To Neighbors Using RNA

A New Study Shows That Plants Talk To Neighbors Using RNA

Scientists Discover That Plants Use RNA To Talk To Neighbors

Plants employ different mechanisms to liaise with other organisms. Volatile molecules can attract pollinators and signal flowering, for example, and networks of the mycorrhizal fungi can transfer resources or transmit warnings.

Small RNAs are among the list of liaising compounds, and recent studies verify their features: according to a publication released on 14/10/2021 in the journal, Nature Plants, single-stranded & small RNAs known as miRNAs (microRNAs) are released by the Arabidopsis thaliana into its medium of growth. Following this, the neighboring individuals pick up these RNAs which change their patterns of gene expression by preventing the translation of certain genes (a phenomenon referred to as RNA interference) and by interacting with mRNA (messenger RNA), indicating that plants use RNA to talk to neighbors.

University of California’s Plant Molecular Geneticist, Hailing Jin, who did not participate in the research stated that it is interesting to note that plants are able to take up miRNAs from their surrounding, even those released by other plants via their roots.

Arabidopsis thaliana flowers. Image Credits: TheScientist

It is not a new thing that small RNAs could be interchanged between organisms. Apart from their function as gene expression regulators in an organism- in reaction to stress or as part of the development- they have been involved in protection from pathogens lately. For example, Botrytis cinerea, pathogenic fungi, infected Arabidopsis cells release small RNAs enclosed in extracellular vesicles. When this vesicle is introduced into the attacker’s body, its virulence is impeded. Additionally, plants are capable of taking up sprayed RNA entities that target pathogens’ genes. The latest study shows the first evidence of a plant’s potential to take up RNA released by the other plants into their surroundings.

Plant physiologist from Italy’s Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies and the co-author of the article, Pierdomenico Perata wrote in a mail to The Scientists that the outcomes were completely unexpected. He additionally wrote that with the reputation of RNA being highly unstable entities outside the cell, his group anticipated miRNA to be unsuitable for a non-sterile surrounding like the growth medium.

Perata mentioned that his group was researching on a completely different subject- studying the function of RNA interference when there is oxygen availability is limited- and because of that they cultured engineered Arabidopsis plants hydroponically to make enormous quantities of particular miRNAs. He further added that since they merely intended to produce seeds, the scientists did not consider keeping plant lines separately. However, they observed that the wild-type plants which share the hydroponic solution of the mutant had phenotypes distinct from that anticipated-for instance, those plants which overexpressed miRNAs that target the development genes and grown near the mutant plant had changed their own flowering time. Based on Perata, during this time, the whole team wondered whether miRNAs could be secreted into the medium and affect the wild-type plants’ phenotype.

The scientists examined the hydroponic solution and then identified miRNAs. Despite the type of the plants grown in the solution (mutated for overexpression or wild-type), miRNAs were present. Moreover, growing both lines in the same medium made wild-type plants with particularly low levels of gene expression targeted by the enhanced miRNA molecules of the mutant. miRNAs taken from the mutants or chemically made equivalents lowered the expression of the gene.

Why a plant has to interfere with the gene expression of another plant? Perata’s postulates for answering this question is that data sharing through RNA exchange facilitates stress-experiencing plants to alert the neighboring plants which are yet to get affected. He commented that competition is another explanation for this. For example, if miRNA secreting plants could obstruct physiological functions in a neighboring plant, it can acquire a competitive benefit of using resources.

A mystery question is how the plants in the same medium exchange miRNAs. The former project which focussed on the RNA exchange between pathogens & plants proposes that a kind of vesicles known as exosomes can serve as carriers, may be involved in the process. Nonetheless, the scientists discovered that using extracted, specifically synthetic RNAs or naked miRNAs had an impact on the expression of the gene, indicating that exosomes are not required of the uptake.

IMCAS’s (Institute of Microbiology Chinese Academy of Sciences) plant microbiologist, Hui-Shan Guo claimed that the proof of the work for naked RNA uptake & RNA-mediated plant communication verifies the former reports regarding gene silencing using sprayed-on RNA. She proposed in a mail to The Scientists that in the presence of nutrients, plants may actively uptake small RNAs from their surroundings. She added that, unlike the molecules which are known to be secreted by plants, naked RNAs were considered as unstable, therefore RNA assimilation was underestimated or ignored.

Jin accepts that the proof in the article backs the proposal that plants can assimilate naked miRNA, however, she added that she wondered if their release still happens through exosomes from roots- an unexplored area. She also mentioned that she suspected the potential of the vesicles in protecting miRNAs, assisting the plants to achieve more efficient assimilation. She speculated that if not, the molecules could get degraded easily in the environment or soil.

Guo highlighted that since the mechanism has just been studied in hydroponically cultured plants, it is not clearly understood if the soil-grown seedlings would have an influence on the gene expression regulation in neighboring plants-something upcoming research can focus on.

Jin stated that these recent discoveries of RNA-mediated plant communication unleash many new questions and there is probably going to be a lot to understand about the RNA’s role in plant communication. She concluded that the only thing that they know is the tip of the iceberg.

Source


Plants Use RNA To Talk To Neighbors, RNA-Mediated Plant Communication

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