Inheritance Of Acquired Adaptive Cold Tolerance In Rice Through Dna Methylation Xianwei Song Shanjie Tang Hui Liu Ying Meng Haofei Luo Bao Wang Xiuli Hou Bin Yan Chao Yang Zhenhua Guo Lizhi Wang Shukun Jiang Xian Deng Xiaofeng Cao by Xianwei Song & Shanjie Tang & Hui Liu & Ying Meng & Haofei Luo & Bao Wang & Xiu-li Hou & Bin Yan & Chao Yang & Zhenhua Guo & Lizhi Wang & Shukun Jiang & Xian Deng & Xiaofeng Cao instant download after payment.

SUMMARYEpigenetic pathways could provide a mechanistic explanation for the inheritance of acquired characteristics,as proposed by Lamarck in 1802, but epigenetic alterations that endow adaptive hereditary traits have rarelybeen observed. Here, in cultivated Asian rice (Oryza sativa L.), we identified an epiallele conferring acquiredand heritable cold tolerance, an adaptive trait enabling northward spread from its tropical origins. We subjected cold-sensitive rice to multigenerational cold stress and identified a line with acquired stable inheritance of cold tolerance. DNA-hypomethylation variation in the acquired cold tolerance 1 (ACT1) promoter region rendered its expression insensitive to cold. This change is, in large part, responsible for the acquiredcold tolerance, as confirmed by DNA-methylation editing. Natural variation in ACT1 DNA hypomethylationis associated with cold tolerance and rice geographic distribution. Hypomethylation at ACT1 triggers adaptive cold tolerance, presenting a route to epigenetic-variation-driven inheritance of acquired characteristics.