Photo Credit: Lidia Stawinska
Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary
- Main Discovery: Researchers identified a "winter memory" mechanism in plants involving protein clusters (VIN3 and VRN5) that double in size during cold conditions and persist after warming to trigger spring flowering.
- Methodology: A novel microscopy technique called SlimVar was developed, utilizing adjusted light angles and advanced computer processing to track single molecules up to 30 micrometres deep within living plant tissues.
- Key Data: The VIN3 and VRN5 protein clusters doubled in size during cold exposure; imaging depth achieved was up to 30 micrometres, surpassing traditional limits where light scattering obscures deep tissue views.
- Significance: This study provides the first direct visualization of how plants utilize epigenetics—specifically long-lasting protein clusters acting as "memory hubs"—to repress flowering-prevention genes and time growth cycles accurately.
- Future Application: The SlimVar technique enables deeper study of plant stress responses and adaptation strategies, potentially aiding in the development of crops resilient to changing climates.
- Branch of Science: Plant Biology and Biophysics
- Additional Detail: The research focused on the interaction of VIN3 and VRN5 proteins with genes that prevent flowering, demonstrating that these clusters physically associate with the gene locus to "switch off" inhibition.
Scientists have developed a powerful new microscope that reveals, for the first time, how plants store a ‘memory’ of winter deep inside their cells.
Many plants only flower in spring after experiencing a long spell of cold - they know the cold is ending and it is time for growth.
But until now, researchers have struggled to see how this winter memory forms, because the key molecules are buried several layers deep inside living tissues.
A team at the University of York has created a technique called SlimVar, which acts like an ultra-sensitive camera in a microscopic world. It can track single molecules moving around up to 30 micrometers inside plant roots — far deeper than traditional microscopes can manage, where light normally becomes too scattered to form a clear image.
'Switch off'
By adjusting the angle of the light and using advanced computer processing, the new technique can cut through the ‘blur’ and reveal the movements of individual molecules in real time.
Professor Mark Leake, from the University of York’s Department of Biology and the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology, said: “Using the technique, we followed two proteins, VIN3 and VRN5, which help plants switch off a gene that prevents flowering. During cold conditions, these proteins gather into tiny clusters inside the nucleus of plant cells.
“We found that these clusters doubled in size during the cold. Some formed around a gene linked to flowering, and many remained in place even after the plant warmed up again. We believe these long-lasting clusters act like miniature “memory hubs”, helping the plant remember it has been through winter and it's now time to start new growth.”
Changing climates
The discovery, published in the journal Nature Communications, offers a clearer picture of how plants use epigenetics - natural, reversible changes that affect gene activity - to sense and react to their environment.
Until now, examining these processes inside thick plant tissues has been nearly impossible. SlimVar could open the door to studying how plants respond to stress, grow, and adapt to changing climates.
Published in journal: Nature Communications
Title: SlimVar for rapid in vivo single-molecule tracking of chromatin regulators in plants
Authors: Alex L. Payne-Dwyer, Geng-Jen Jang, Caroline Dean, and Mark C. Leake
Source/Credit: University of York
Reference Number: bot011926_01