Epigenetic drivers of sunflower drought tolerance

Abstract

Drought as a major abiotic stress induces numerous, complex responses in plant cells. Those include gene expression alteration, accumulation of different metabolites, and synthesis of specific proteins. Changes on a molecular level are under the control of complex regulatory pathways that include epigenetic mechanisms responsible for suitable and fast reactions to newly occurring stress conditions. Epigenetic modifications cause gene expression alteration through histone posttranscriptional modifications, DNA methylation, and small RNAs and lncRNAs expression. Some of these epigenetic modifications might pass on to the next generation and thus providing a good basis for a quicker response to drought stress. Revealing the epigenetic mechanisms involved in stress response could be of use in breeding programs for a prompt adaptation of plants to stress conditions. Hence, we have tested 30 sunflower inbred lines created at the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops (IFVCNS) in in vitro conditions using PEG 6000 for creating a smaller panel of genotypes for analyzing their transcriptome alterations induced by drought.