Transgenerational Stability of the Arabidopsis Epigenome Is Coordinated by CG Methylation

Maintenance of CG methylation (mCG) patterns is essential for chromatin-mediated epigenetic regulation of transcription in plants and mammals. Using successive generations of an Arabidopsis thaliana mutant deficient in maintaining mCG, we found that mCG loss triggered genome-wide activation of alternative epigenetic mechanisms. However, these mechanisms involving RNA-directed DNA methylation, inhibiting expression of DNA demethylases, and retargeting of histone H3K9 methylation act in a stochastic and uncoordinated fashion. As a result, new and aberrant epigenetic patterns were progressively formed over several plant generations in the absence of mCG. Interestingly, the unconventional redistribution of epigenetic marks was necessary to rescue the loss of mCG, since mutant plants impaired in rescue activities were severely dwarfed and sterile. Our results provide evidence that mCG is a central coordinator of epigenetic memory that secures stable transgenerational inheritance in plants.

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Mathieu O, Reinders J, Caikovski M, Smathajitt C, Paszkowski J