Caihuan Tian / Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology
Yuling Jiao / Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology
Gene regulatory networks control development via domain-specific gene expression. However, the gene expression patterns in different cell domains are difficult to obtain, especially in plants where cells are glued together by cell walls.
In seed plants, self-renewing stem cells located in the shoot apical meristem (SAM) produce leaves from the SAM peripheral zone. Leaves develop polarity patterns following initiation to form a planar shape. Using a technology termed translating ribosome affinity purification together with deep sequencing (TRAP-seq), we isolated domain-specific translating mRNAs associated with ribosomes, and quantified gene expressions in each domain. A user-friendly browser for data visualization is implemented in electronic fluorescent pictograph (eFP) browser at http://jiaolab.genetics.ac.cn/shootapex.html.
From the translatome map, we identified many domain-specific features, including signature genes, domain-specific alternative splicing, and long non-coding RNAs. We also identified novel regulators of axillary meristem (AM) initiation through co-expression network analysis. The dataset will provide a community resource for further study of shoot development and response to internal and environmental signals.