High impact information on FWA

• The late flowering phenotype, ectopic FWA expression, and hypomethylation of the repeats were also induced in the ddm1 hypomethylated background [1].
• FWA was identified by loss-of-function mutations in normally flowering revertants of the fwa mutant, and it encodes a homeodomain-containing transcription factor [1].
• The DNA sequence of wild-type and fwa mutant alleles was identical in the genomic region of FWA [1].
• DNA methylation targets a small region upstream of FIS2 distinct from the target of DNA methylation associated with FWA [2].
• In Arabidopsis thaliana, maternal imprinting has been clearly demonstrated for the Polycomb group gene MEDEA (MEA) and for FWA [2].

Biological context of FWA

• Here we mapped sequences critical for FWA silencing by application of RdDM (RNA-directed DNA methylation) to a ddm1-induced stable fwa epiallele [3].
• The results indicate that methylation of the direct repeats, which presumably originated from a short interspersed nuclear element (SINE), is sufficient to induce proper epigenetic control of the FWA gene [3].
• A unique feature of late-flowering fwa epigenetic mutations is that the phenotype is caused by ectopic expression of the homeobox gene FWA [3].
• Control of FWA gene silencing in Arabidopsis thaliana by SINE-related direct repeats [3].
• We show that FWA and FIS2 imprinting requires the maintenance of DNA methylation throughout the plant life cycle, including male gametogenesis and endosperm development [2].

Associations of FWA with chemical compounds

• In addition, up-regulation of the homeodomain transcription factor FWA, transposon-related elements, and several DNA- and chromatin-modifying enzymes indicated that epigenetic changes contribute to the acquisition of cytokinin habituation [4].

Other interactions of FWA

• Double mutants between ft-1 or fwa-1 and lfy-6 completely lack flowerlike structures, indicating that both FWA and FT act redundantly with LFY to control AP1 [5].
• These genetic interactions suggest models for how CO, FWA, FT, and SOC1 interact during the transition to flowering [6].
• Activation of the maternal MEDEA allele requires the function of DEMETER, a plant DNA glycosylase that also controls the transcriptional activity of the maternally inherited allele of the late-flowering gene FWA [7].
• The RNA silencing gene ARGONAUTE4 (AGO4) is required for maintenance of DNA methylation at several endogenous loci and for the establishment of methylation at the FWA gene [8].
• These processes are integrated by the function of the genes FD, FE, FWA, PDF2, SOC1, and FT at the integration pathway [9].

References