Architecture and dynamics of the jasmonic acid gene regulatory network
Jasmonic acid (JA) and its derivatives including methyl jasmonate (MeJA) mediate diverse responses to wounding and herbivory and also help to control the growth-defense trade off. JA’s core signaling components have mainly been identified through genetics approaches in Arabidopsis, but gaps remain between JA synthesis / receptor interactions and downstream responses. Hickman and Van Verk et al. carried out a detailed temporal transcriptional profile of Arabidopsis plants treated with MeJA (which is readily converted to JA) to assemble a gene regulatory network. They also examined several transcription factor mutants to correlate which transcription factors regulate which downstream genes. They conclude, “Our time series study shows that MeJA induces a burst of transcriptional activity that generates a variety of detailed temporal expression patterns that partition into specific gene clusters representing different biological processes.” Plant Cell
