Genetic Screens for Floral Mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana: Enhancers and Suppressors.

The flower is a hallmark feature that has contributed to the evolutionary success of land plants. Diverse mutagenic agents have been employed as a tool to genetically perturb flower development and identify genes involved in floral patterning and morphogenesis. Since the initial studies to identify genes governing processes such as floral organ specification, mutagenesis in sensitized backgrounds has been used to isolate enhancers and suppressors to further probe the molecular basis of floral development.

Correction: ARGONAUTE10 promotes the degradation of miR165/6 through the SDN1 and SDN2 exonucleases in Arabidopsis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.

ARGONAUTE10 promotes the degradation of miR165/6 through the SDN1 and SDN2 exonucleases in Arabidopsis.

The degradation of small RNAs in plants and animals is associated with small RNA 3' truncation and 3' uridylation and thus relies on exonucleases and nucleotidyl transferases. ARGONAUTE (AGO) proteins associate with small RNAs in vivo and are essential for not only the activities but also the stability of small RNAs. AGO1 is the microRNA (miRNA) effector in Arabidopsis, and its closest homolog, AGO10, maintains stem cell homeostasis in meristems by sequestration of miR165/6, a conserved miRNA acting through AGO1.

Genetic screens for floral mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana: enhancers and suppressors.

The flower is a hallmark feature that has contributed to the evolutionary success of land plants. Diverse mutagenic agents have been employed as a tool to genetically perturb flower development and identify genes involved in floral patterning and morphogenesis. Since the initial studies to identify genes governing processes such as floral organ specification, mutagenesis in sensitized backgrounds has been used to isolate enhancers and suppressors to further probe the molecular basis of floral development.