Plant Elongator-Protein Complex of Diverse Activities Regulates Growth, Development, and Immune Responses

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 21; no. 18; p. 6912
• Main Authors: Jarosz, Magdalena, Van Lijsebettens, Mieke, Woloszynska, Magdalena
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI 22-09-2020; MDPI AG
• Subjects: Arabidopsis - enzymology; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis Proteins - genetics; Arabidopsis Proteins - metabolism; Arabidopsis thaliana; DNA Replication - physiology; DNA, Plant - biosynthesis; DNA, Plant - genetics; Elongator; epigenetics; Histone Acetyltransferases - genetics; Histone Acetyltransferases - metabolism; Multienzyme Complexes - genetics; Multienzyme Complexes - metabolism; Review; RNA, Messenger - biosynthesis; RNA, Messenger - genetics; RNA, Plant - biosynthesis; RNA, Plant - genetics; transcription; Transcription Elongation, Genetic - physiology; translation; Arabidopsis thaliana; translation; transcription; Elongator; epigenetics
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms21186912

Contrary to the conserved Elongator composition in yeast, animals, and plants, molecular functions and catalytic activities of the complex remain controversial. Elongator was identified as a component of elongating RNA polymerase II holoenzyme in yeast, animals, and plants. Furthermore, it was suggested that Elonagtor facilitates elongation of transcription via histone acetyl transferase activity. Accordingly, phenotypes of
mutants, which show development, growth, or immune response defects, correlate with transcriptional downregulation and the decreased histone acetylation in the coding regions of crucial genes. Plant Elongator was also implicated in other processes: transcription and processing of miRNA, regulation of DNA replication by histone acetylation, and acetylation of alpha-tubulin. Moreover, tRNA modification, discovered first in yeast and confirmed in plants, was claimed as the main activity of Elongator, leading to specificity in translation that might also result indirectly in a deficiency in transcription. Heterologous overexpression of individual
Elongator subunits and their respective phenotypes suggest that single Elongator subunits might also have another function next to being a part of the complex. In this review, we shall present the experimental evidence of all molecular mechanisms and catalytic activities performed by Elongator in nucleus and cytoplasm of plant cells, which might explain how Elongator regulates growth, development, and immune responses.