Mechanisms of Genome Maintenance in Plants: Playing It Safe With Breaks and Bumps

Abstract

Maintenance of genomic integrity is critical for the perpetuation of all forms of life including humans. Living organisms are constantly exposed to stress from internal metabolic processes and external environmental sources causing damage to the DNA, thereby promoting genomic instability. To counter the deleterious effects of genomic instability, organisms have evolved general and specific DNA damage repair (DDR) pathways that act either independently or mutually to repair the DNA damage. The mechanisms by which various DNA repair pathways are activated have been fairly investigated in model organisms including bacteria, fungi, and mammals; however, very little is known regarding how plants sense and repair DNA damage. Plants being sessile are innately exposed to a wide range of DNA-damaging agents both from biotic and abiotic sources such as ultraviolet rays or metabolic by-products. To escape their harmful effects, plants also harbor highly conserved DDR pathways that share several components with the DDR machinery of other organisms. Maintenance of genomic integrity is key for plant survival due to lack of reserve germline as the derivation of the new plant occurs from the meristem. Untowardly, the accumulation of mutations in the meristem will result in a wide range of genetic abnormalities in new plants affecting plant growth development and crop yield. In this review, we will discuss various DNA repair pathways in plants and describe how the deficiency of each repair pathway affects plant growth and development.

Bacillus velezensis SYL-3 suppresses Alternaria alternata and tobacco mosaic virus infecting Nicotiana tabacum by regulating the phyllosphere microbial community

“…This study found that several pathways that are significantly enriched after treatment, such as cofactors and vitamin metabolism pathways, are related to the promotion of plant resistance by microbial treatment ( Sun et al, 2021 ). Studies have shown that DNA damage repair pathways mainly determine genome integrity and plant survival ( Raina et al, 2021 ). Meanwhile, the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites of microorganisms is recognized as a rich source of biomolecules with potential medicinal applications ( Li and Tan, 2017 ).…”

Gamma ray induced positive alterations in morphogenetic and yield attributing traits of finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn.) in M2 generation

“…In this global changing climatic conditions, the crop requires continuous genetic enrichments and for this purpose, various breeding strategies have been designed and implemented. Among breeding approaches, radiation mutagenesis has proven an effective breeding strategy for crop improvement programmes aimed at increasing variability (1,2). It is a coherent tool for the creation of genetic variability, an important prerequisite for any crop improvement programmes in a shorter span of time (3)(4)(5)(6).…”

Comparative Genome-Wide Analysis of Two Caryopteris x Clandonensis Cultivars: Insights on the Biosynthesis of Volatile Terpenoids

“…Plants are exposed to endogenous and exogenous stresses such as chemicals or UV-radiation which can significantly alter DNA, thus there is high importance for repair mechanisms [ 56 ]. High redundancy of those ensures the safe replication of DNA with almost no errors [ 57 ].…”