Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Nov;20(6):739-761.
doi: 10.1007/s10142-020-00756-7. Epub 2020 Oct 21.

Epigenetics and epigenomics: underlying mechanisms, relevance, and implications in crop improvement

Gaurav Agarwal  1   2 , Himabindu Kudapa  1 , Abirami Ramalingam  3 , Divya Choudhary  2 , Pallavi Sinha  1 , Vanika Garg  1 , Vikas K Singh  4 , Gunvant B Patil  5 , Manish K Pandey  1 , Henry T Nguyen  6 , Baozhu Guo  2   7 , Ramanjulu Sunkar  8 , Chad E Niederhuth  9 , Rajeev K Varshney  10   11
Affiliations
Review

Epigenetics and epigenomics: underlying mechanisms, relevance, and implications in crop improvement

Gaurav Agarwal et al. Funct Integr Genomics. 2020 Nov.

Abstract

Epigenetics is defined as changes in gene expression that are not associated with changes in DNA sequence but due to the result of methylation of DNA and post-translational modifications to the histones. These epigenetic modifications are known to regulate gene expression by bringing changes in the chromatin state, which underlies plant development and shapes phenotypic plasticity in responses to the environment and internal cues. This review articulates the role of histone modifications and DNA methylation in modulating biotic and abiotic stresses, as well as crop improvement. It also highlights the possibility of engineering epigenomes and epigenome-based predictive models for improving agronomic traits.

Keywords: DNA methylation; EpiRILs; Epigenetic inheritance; Epigenome engineering; Histone modifications.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Agius F, Kapoor A, Zhu J-K (2006) Role of the Arabidopsis DNA glycosylase/lyase ROS1 in active DNA demethylation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 103:11796–11801 - PubMed - PMC
    1. Aller ES, Jagd LM, Kliebenstein DJ, Burow M (2018) Comparison of the relative potential for epigenetic and genetic variation to contribute to trait stability. G3 8:1733–1746 - PubMed - PMC
    1. Allis CD, Jenuwein T (2016) The molecular hallmarks of epigenetic control. Nat Rev Genet 17:487–500 - PubMed - PMC
    1. Alonso C, Ramos-Cruz D, Becker C (2019) The role of plant epigenetics in bioticinteractions. New Phytol 221:731–737 - PubMed - PMC
    1. Alvarez-Venegas R, Pien S, Sadder M, Witmer X, Grossniklaus U, Avramova Z (2003) ATX-1, an Arabidopsis homolog of trithorax, activates flower homeotic genes. Curr Biol 13:627–637 - PubMed - PMC

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources