Regulation of Leaves Senescence by Virus-Induced Gene Silencing (VIGS) Modus Operandi in Arabidopsis

[摘要] The final leaf developmental stage starts with nutrients salvage and ends at cells’ death, whereby leaf yellowing is the first noticeable event during senescence. Yellowing of leaves starts at the margins and progresses to the interior of the leaves’ blade. In this regard, there are only a few factors that are being demonstrated in involving the regulation of cell death by evaluating the leaf senescence appearances of knocking of mutants and identifying downstream target genes. Thus, the current research aimed to evaluate the efficiency of Virus-Induced Gene Silencing (VIGS) and its functional analysis for a potential regulation of leaves senescence in Arabidopsis. In the present study, the silencing of the plant by VIGS technique caused a narrative phenotype with a high level of transcript levels. Nevertheless, the phenotype is exemplified with a smaller size compared to the wild type (WT) with smaller roots, leaves, and overall plant bodies. Interestingly, the vector (VG)-silenced plants showed intense yellowing of leaves developed at the bottom regions along with a smaller number of tillers from the base of the plants. Moreover, we also tested leaves of age-dependent silenced Arabidopsis plants and observed a reduction in size and number of leaf cells compared to that of non-silenced (WT) control plants. To understand the advanced regulatory molecular mechanisms, the efficiency of vector infection has been confirmed through changes that happened via the measurement of ion seepage and decreasing content of chlorophyll, measurement of SAG12, and PAGs gene expressions. In conclusion, VIGS approach play a critical role in leaves senescence.

[学科分类] 生物科学（综合）

[关键词] Arabidopsis;Chlorophyll;Senescence;Silencing;VIGS.