Authors

Durand E1, Méheust R1, Soucaze M1, Goubet PM1, Gallina S1, Poux C1, Fobis-Loisy I2, Guillon E2, Gaude T2, Sarazin A3, Figeac M4, Prat E5, Marande W5, Bergès H5, Vekemans X1, Billiard S1, Castric V6.

Science. 346(6214):1200-5. doi: 10.1126/science.1259442.

Abstract

The prevention of fertilization through self-pollination (or pollination by a close relative) in the Brassicaceae plant family is determined by the genotype of the plant at the self-incompatibility locus (S locus). The many alleles at this locus exhibit a dominance hierarchy that determines which of the two allelic specificities of a heterozygous genotype is expressed at the phenotypic level. Here, we uncover the evolution of how at least 17 small RNA (sRNA)-producing loci and their multiple target sites collectively control the dominance hierarchy among alleles within the gene controlling the pollen S-locus phenotype in a self-incompatible Arabidopsis species. Selection has created a dynamic repertoire of sRNA-target interactions by jointly acting on sRNA genes and their target sites, which has resulted in a complex system of regulation among alleles.

Link : http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25477454