0000000000150402

AUTHOR

Amparo Andrés-bordería

Deregulated High Affinity Copper Transport Alters Iron Homeostasis inArabidopsis

The present work describes the effects on iron homeostasis when copper transport was deregulated in Arabidopsis thaliana by overexpressing high affinity copper transporters COPT1 and COPT3 (COPTOE). A genome-wide analysis conducted on COPT1OE plants, highlighted that iron homeostasis gene expression was affected under both copper deficiency and excess. Among the altered genes were those encoding the iron uptake machinery and their transcriptional regulators. Subsequently, COPTOE seedlings contained less iron and were more sensitive than controls to iron deficiency. The deregulation of copper (I) uptake hindered the transcriptional activation of the subgroup Ib of basic helix-loop-helix (bHL…

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Modulation of copper deficiency responses by diurnal and circadian rhythms in Arabidopsis thaliana

Highlight Cyclic expression of copper transport and the responses to copper deficiency are integrated into the light and circadian–oscillator signalling in plants.

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Daily rhythmicity of high affinity copper transport

A differential demand for copper (Cu) of essential cupro-proteins that act within the mitochondrial and chloroplastal electronic transport chains occurs along the daily light/dark cycles. This requires a fine-tuned spatiotemporal regulation of Cu delivery, becoming especially relevant under non-optimal growth conditions. When scarce, Cu is imported through plasma membrane-bound high affinity Cu transporters (COPTs) whose coding genes are transcriptionally induced by the SPL7 transcription factor. Temporal homeostatic mechanisms are evidenced by the presence of multiple light- and clock-responsive regulatory cis elements in the promoters of both SPL7 and its COPT targets. A model is presente…

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The Copper-microRNA Pathway Is Integrated with Developmental and Environmental Stress Responses in Arabidopsis thaliana

As an essential nutrient, copper (Cu) scarcity causes a decrease in agricultural production. Cu deficiency responses include the induction of several microRNAs, known as Cu-miRNAs, which are responsible for degrading mRNAs from abundant and dispensable cuproproteins to economize copper when scarce. Cu-miRNAs, such as miR398 and miR408 are conserved, as well as the signal transduction pathway to induce them under Cu deficiency. The Arabidopsis thaliana SQUAMOSA-PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE (SPL) family member SPL7 binds to the cis-regulatory motifs present in the promoter regions of genes expressed under Cu deficiency, including Cu-miRNAs. The expression of several other SPL transcription f…

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Temporal aspects of copper homeostasis and its crosstalk with hormones

To cope with the dual nature of copper as being essential and toxic for cells, plants temporarily adapt the expression of copper homeostasis components to assure its delivery to cuproproteins while avoiding the interference of potential oxidative damage derived from both copper uptake and photosynthetic reactions during light hours. The circadian clock participates in the temporal organization of coordination of plant nutrition adapting metabolic responses to the daily oscillations. This timely control improves plant fitness and reproduction and holds biotechnological potential to drive increased crop yields. Hormonal pathways, including those of abscisic acid, gibberellins, ethylene, auxin…

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Expanding the β-III Spectrin-Associated Phenotypes toward Non-Progressive Congenital Ataxias with Neurodegeneration

(1) Background: A non-progressive congenital ataxia (NPCA) phenotype caused by b-III spectrin (SPTBN2) mutations has emerged, mimicking spinocerebellar ataxia, autosomal recessive type 14 (SCAR14). The pattern of inheritance, however, resembles that of autosomal dominant classical spinocerebellar ataxia type 5 (SCA5). (2) Methods: In-depth phenotyping of two boys studied by a customized gene panel. Candidate variants were sought by structural modeling and protein expression. An extensive review of the literature was conducted in order to better characterize the SPTBN2-associated NPCA. (3) Results: Patients exhibited an NPCA with hypotonia, developmental delay, cerebellar syndrome, and cogni…

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