Comparative analysis of miRNA networks regulating flowering

在过去的15年里，我们已经了解了许多关于开花时间控制的遗传和分子基础，特别是在两个物种，双子叶拟南芥和单子叶水稻。然而，将这种知识转移到其他作物和树木并不总是直截了当的，原因主要有两个：第一，我们对物种内和物种之间开花时间网络的保守和差异了解不足。其次，人们对开花时间调节剂的多效性作用知之甚少。在这里，我们建议在十字花科中进行比较分析，包括模式植物A.thaliana和Brassica作物，以研究控制开花以及植物发育和生理的其他方面的两个microRNA(MiRNA)模块：miR156及其SPL转录因子靶标，以及miR172及其AP2相关靶标。我们的综合计划结合了(I)序列驱动的方法，它利用十字花科中迅速增加的基因组序列的可用性，加上对小RNA种群的超高通量测序；(Ii)几个物种的比较表型分析；以及(Iii)遗传筛选，它利用了由于新一代测序技术的最新进展，可以难以置信地容易地绘制和分子识别新的突变。

In the past 15 years we have learned a great deal about the genetic and molecular basis of flowering time control, particularly in two species, the dicot Arabidopsis thaliana and the monocot rice. Transferring this knowledge to other crops and trees has, however, not always been straight-forward, because of two main reasons: First, we have an insufficient understanding of conservation and divergence of flowering time networks within and between species. Second, the pleiotropic effects of flowering time regulators are only poorly understood. Here, we propose a comparative analysis in the Brassicaceae, which include both the model plant A. thaliana and Brassica crops, to investigate two microRNA (miRNA) modules controlling flowering as well as other aspects of plant development and physiology: miR156 and its SPL transcription factor targets, and miR172 and its AP2-related targets. Our integrated program incorporates (i) sequence-driven approaches that exploit the availability of a rapidly increasing number of genome sequences in the Brassicaceae, coupled with ultra-high throughput sequencing of small RNA populations; (ii) comparative phenotypic analyses in several species; and (iii) genetic screens that make use of the incredible ease with which novel mutations can be mapped and molecularly identified due to recent advances in next-generation sequencing technologies.