Elucidation of the gene expression regulation mechanism in Chinese cabbage

October 18, 2019

Collaborative research between Kobe University, RIKEN CSRS and the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) has clarified the role of one of the histone chemical modifications important for gene expression regulation in Chinese cabbage. It was also clarified that this modification (the tri-methylation of H3 lysine 27, or H3K27me3) plays a role in regulating the expression of vernalization-related genes in Brassicaceae leaf and root vegetables, which has a direct effect on their commercial value.

The research group will continue to investigate the role of H3K27me3 for individual genes and its relationship to the agricultural traits in Chinese cabbage. Moreover, if researchers can artificially control the modification of H3K27me3 for the FLC gene (a key vernalization response gene), it might become possible to control the timing for induction of flowering.

Original article

DNA Research doi:10.1093/dnares/dsz021

A. Akter, S. Takahashi, W. Deng, D. J. Shea, E. Itabashi, M. Shimizu, N. Miyaji, K. Osabe, N. Nishida, Y. Suzuki, C. A. Helliwell, M. Seki, W. J. Peacock, E. S. Dennis, R. Fujimoto,

"The histone modification H3 lysine 27 tri-methylation has conserved gene regulatory roles in the triplicated genome of Brassica rapa L.".

Contact

Motoaki Seki

Team Leader

Plant Genomic Network Research Team