The role of AUX1 during lateral root development in the domestication of the model C4 grass Setaria italica

Abstract

C4 photosynthesis increases the efficiency of carbon fixation by spatially separating high concentrations of molecular oxygen from rubisco. The specialized leaf anatomy required for this separation evolved independently many times. C4 root systems are highly branched, an adaptation thought to support high rates of photosynthesis; however, little is known about the molecular mechanisms that have driven the evolution of C4 root system architecture (RSA). Using a mutant screen in the C4 model plant Setaria italica, we identify siaux1-1 and siaux1-2 as RSA mutants, and use CRISPR/cas9-mediated genome editing and overexpression to confirm the importance of the locus. As AUX1 is not necessary for lateral root emergence in S. viridis, the species from which S. italica was domesticated, we conducted an analysis of auxin responsive elements in the promoters of auxin-responsive gene families in S. italica, and explore the molecular basis of SiAUX1s role in seedling development using an RNAseq analysis of wild type and siaux1-1 plants. Finally, we use a root coordinate system to compare cell-by-cell meristem structures in siaux1-1 and wild type Setaria plants, observing changes in the distribution of cell volumes in all cell layers and a dependence in the frequency of protophloem and protoxylem strands on siAUX1.