Abstract
In higher plants, transcriptional silencing by chromatin remodeling is suggested to be involved in the embryogenesis and in transition from vegetative to reproductive phase. PKL is a putative component of histone deacetylase (HDAC) complex which is related to transcriptional silencing. PKL represses the expression of LEC1 during seed germination and this repression of LEC1 leads to the postembryonic development of the embryos.
We analyzed the effects of HDAC inhibitors on seed germination in Arabidopsis. Treatment with HDAC inhibitors suppressed germination and did not the expression of LEC1. In LEC1 deficient mutant, the germination was not suppressed by the treatment with HDAC inhibitors. When HDAC inhibitor-treated seeds were transferred to inhibitor-free medium, the germinated seedlings showed abnormal development: formation of multiple-shoots and somatic embryo-like structures on the leaves. These results suggest that histone deacetylation is related to repression of LEC1 expression during germination and transition from embryonic to postembryonic development.
