Chromatin and transcriptome dynamics during sexual plant reproduction
Molecular Genetics of Plant Development
Sexual reproduction in flowering plants involves several cell fate transitions: (i) vegetative-to-reproductive transition of the apical meristem, (ii) reprogramming of floral somatic cells to generate the gametic progenitors (micro/mega-spore mother cells), (iii) differentiation of specialized gametes, (iv) fertilization and development of a totipotent embryo. These transitions occurring in the adult plant illustrate the remarkable plasticity of plant cells, unlike animals’ which are committed early during embryogenesis. My research focuses on transitions and cell fate reprogramming in the transitions (ii-iv) and investigates two critical aspects:
(1) From the diploid gamete progenitor to the differentiated gametes the plant chromatin seem to undergo dramatic and dynamic changes not only in histone/DNA modifications but also in structural organisation (fig1) and in core nucleosome constituent, as seen in chromatin staining and GFP reporter studies. We are investigating these key processes underlying fate reprogramming.
(2) fertilization unites two parental genomes to form a totipotent embryo; yet parental alleles do not contribute in an equal way to the embryonic transcriptome which remains massively maternally dominant, as seen in allele-specific profiling experiments (fig 2).
Recent Publications
- Linker histones are fine-scale chromatin architects modulating developmental decisions in Arabidopsis
Rutowicz, K; Lirski, M; Mermaz, B; Teano, G; Schubert, J; Mestiri, I; Kroten, MA; Fabrice, TN; Fritz, S; Grob, S; Ringli, C; Cherkezyan, L; Barneche, F; Jerzmanowski, A; Baroux, C
GENOME BIOLOGY, 20 (1):10.1186/s13059-019-1767-3 AUG 7 2019 - The SMC5/6 Complex Subunit NSE4A Is Involved in DNA Damage Repair and Seed Development
Diaz, M; Pecinkova, P; Nowicka, A; Baroux, C; Sakamoto, T; Gandha, PY; Jerabkova, H; Matsunaga, S; Grossniklaus, U; Pecinka, A
PLANT CELL, 31 (7):1579-1597; 10.1105/tpc.18.00043 JUL 2019 - Probing the 3D architecture of the plant nucleus with microscopy approaches: challenges and solutions
Dumur, T; Duncan, S; Graumann, K; Desset, S; Randall, RS; Scheid, OM; Prodanov, D; Tatout, C; Baroux, C
NUCLEUS, 10 (1):181-212; 10.1080/19491034.2019.1644592 JAN 1 2019 - Seeds – An evolutionary innovation underlying reproductive success in flowering plants
Baroux, C; Grossniklaus, U
PLANT DEVELOPMENT AND EVOLUTION, 131 605-+; 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2018.11.017 2019
Current Topics in Developmental Biology - Meeting report - INDEPTH kick-off meeting
Parry, G; Probst, AV; Baroux, C; Tatout, C
JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE, 131 (12):10.1242/jcs.220558 JUN 2018 - Aberrant imprinting may underlie evolution of parthenogenesis
Kirioukhova, O; Shah, JN; Larsen, DS; Tayyab, M; Mueller, NE; Govind, G; Baroux, C; Federer, M; Gheyselinck, J; Barrell, PJ; Ma, H; Sprunck, S; Huettel, B; Wallace, H; Grossniklaus, U; Johnston, AJ
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 8 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-27863-7 JUL 13 2018 - PHO1 Exports Phosphate from the Chalazal Seed Coat to the Embryo in Developing Arabidopsis Seeds
Vogiatzaki, Evangelia; Baroux, Celia; Jung, Ji-Yul; et al.
CURRENT BIOLOGY, 27 (19): 10.1016/j.cub.2017.08.026 OCT 9 2017 - Phylogeny-Based Systematization of Arabidopsis Proteins with Histone H1 Globular Domain
Kotlinski, Maciej; Knizewski, Lukasz; Muszewska, Anna; et al.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY, 174 (1): 27-34, 10.1104/pp.16.00214 MAY 2017 - Unreeling the chromatin thread: a genomic perspective on organization around the periphery of the Arabidopsis nucleus
Barneche, Fredy; Baroux, Celia
GENOME BIOLOGY, 18, 10.1186/s13059-017-1239-6 MAY 23 2017 - Non-random chromosome arrangement in triploid endosperm nuclei
Baroux, Celia; Pecinka, Ales; Fuchs, Joerg; et al.
CHROMOSOMA, 126 (1): 115-124, 10.1007/s00412-016-0578-5 FEB 2017 - The Maternal-to-Zygotic Transition in Flowering Plants: Evidence, Mechanisms, and Plasticity
Baroux, Celia; Grossniklaus, Ueli
MATERNAL-TO-ZYGOTIC TRANSITION, 113: 351-371 2015 Review; Book Chapter

PD Dr. Célia Baroux
University of Zurich
Department of Plant and Microbial Biology
8008 Zurich
Tel: +41 (0)44 634 82 50
Publications
Research topics
- Chromatin dynamics during female gametogenesis reprogramming
- Dynamic parental contributions to the early embryonic transcriptome