TAS1 trans-acting siRNA targets are differentially regulated at low temperature, and TAS1 trans-acting siRNA mediates temperature-controlled At1g51670 expression

Abstract

To endure considerable fluctuations in temperature, plants need precise regulation of temperature-controlled gene expression. In this study, the involvement of TAS1 transacting siRNA (tasiRNA) in temperature-controlled gene expression was examined in Arabidopsis. The accumulation of TAS1 tasiRNA was downregulated at 4°C. Concomitant with the reduction of TAS1 tasiRNA-mediated cleavage, expression of At1g51670, a target of TAS1 tasiRNA, was upregulated at 4°C in the wild type but not in a dicer-like enzyme (DCL) 4 mutant (dcl4-2), which is impaired in tasiRNA biogenesis. The expression of At4g29760 and of At5g18040, further TAS1 tasiRNA targets, was upregulated both in the wild type and in dcl4-2 at 4°C. However, after shifting the temperature to 22°C, low-temperature-induced expression of At4g29760 rapidly dropped in the wild type, but not in dcl4-2. Thus TAS1 tasiRNA acted as a sweeper for the clearance of excess amounts of At4g29760 transcripts. Our data suggest that differential regulation of TAS1 tasiRNA targets is involved in temperature-controlled gene expression.