Formaldehyde-assisted isolation of regulatory DNA elements from Arabidopsis leaves.

Eukaryotic gene transcription is associated with the eviction of nucleosomes and the formation of open chromatin, which enables the recruitment of transcriptional coactivators and other regulatory factors. Open chromatin is thus a hallmark of functional regulatory DNA elements in genomes. In recent years, formaldehyde-assisted isolation of regulatory elements (FAIRE) has proven powerful in identifying open chromatin in the genome of various eukaryotes, particularly yeast, human, and mouse.

Isolation of Open Chromatin Identifies Regulators of Systemic Acquired Resistance.

Upon local infection, plants activate a systemic immune response called systemic acquired resistance (SAR). During SAR, systemic leaves become primed for the superinduction of defense genes upon reinfection. We used formaldehyde-assisted isolation of regulatory DNA elements coupled to next-generation sequencing to identify SAR regulators.

Sulforaphane Modifies Histone H3, Unpacks Chromatin, and Primes Defense.

Modern crop production calls for agrochemicals that prime plants for enhanced defense. Reliable test systems for spotting priming-inducing chemistry, however, are rare. We developed an assay for the high-throughput search for compounds that prime microbial pattern-induced secretion of antimicrobial furanocoumarins (phytoalexins) in cultured parsley cells.

Key Components of Different Plant Defense Pathways Are Dispensable for Powdery Mildew Resistance of the Arabidopsis Triple Mutant.

Loss of function mutations of particular plant () genes confer durable and broad-spectrum penetration resistance against powdery mildew fungi. Here, we combined genetic, transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses to explore the defense mechanisms in the fully resistant triple mutant. We found that this genotype unexpectedly overcomes the requirement for indolic antimicrobials and defense-related secretion, which are critical for incomplete resistance of single mutants.