Alternative splicing in plant abiotic stress responses

Abstract

Modifications of the cellular proteome pool upon stress allow plants to tolerate environmental changes. Alternative splicing is the most significant mechanism responsible for the production of multiple protein isoforms from a single gene. The spliceosome, a large ribonucleoprotein complex, together with several associated proteins, controls this pre-mRNA processing, adding an additional level of regulation to gene expression. Deep sequencing of transcriptomes revealed that this co- or post-transcriptional mechanism is highly induced by abiotic stress, and concerns vast numbers of stress-related genes. Confirming the importance of splicing in plant stress adaptation, key players of stress signaling have been shown to encode alternative transcripts, whereas mutants lacking splicing factors or associated components show a modified sensitivity and defective responses to abiotic stress. Here, we examine recent literature on alternative splicing and splicing alterations in response to environmental stresses, focusing on its role in stress adaptation and analyzing the future perspectives and directions for research.

Heat Stress Responses and Thermotolerance in Maize

“…Heat also enhances alternative RNA splicing (AS) in maize. AS produces different RNA isoforms, thereby enhancing the complexity of the genic output and, possibly, the repertoire of responses to different environmental conditions [107][108][109]. In a study conducted under controlled conditions in the Enviratron, elevated daily temperatures enhanced the frequency of global AS events in maize [70] (Li, in review).…”

Deciphering the transcriptomic regulation of heat stress responses in Nothofagus pumilio

“…In this study, the combined analysis of genes over-expressed under heat stress in N. pumilio, A. thaliana and P. tomentosa allowed us to identify a core of shared responses to high temperature, mostly related to protein misfolding and chaperone activity, with the over-expression of more than ten HSPs, one LEA and two DnaJ protein genes (S10 and S11 Tables in S2 File, and S6 Fig in S1 File). Alternative splicing (AS) is known to be triggered in plants in response to stress [102], and particularly, several genes related to plant stress responses are subjected to AS [103]. In our study, the "Spliceosome" KEGG Pathway was significantly enriched among genes up-regulated at 34˚C in N. pumilio (Fig 1B and S5 Table in S2 File), and several genes involved in pre-mRNA splicing were shared between N. pumilio, A. thaliana and P. tomentosa at high temperature, including several DEAD-box ATP-dependent RNA helicases (S10 Table in S2 File).…”

Phylogenetic Analysis of the Plant U2 snRNP Auxiliary Factor Large Subunit A Gene Family in Response to Developmental Cues and Environmental Stimuli

“…In recent years, research on splicing in plants has also garnered much interest. For instance, studies on the stress response networks of splicing-related proteins and alternative splicing under abiotic stress have been reported ( Chen et al, 2020a , b ; Punzo et al, 2020 ). Splicing plays pivotal roles in plant life ( Chen et al, 2020c ).…”