Winter varieties of plants can flower only after exposure to prolonged cold. This phenomenon is known as vernalization and has been widely studied in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana as well as in monocots. Through the repression of floral activator genes, vernalization prevents flowering in winter. In Arabidopsis, FLOWERING LOCUS C or FLC is the key repressor during vernalization, while in monocots vernalization is regulated through VRN1, VRN2 and VRN3 (or FLOWERING LOCUS T). Interestingly, VRN genes are not homologous to FLC but FLC homologs are found to have a significant role in vernalization response in cereals. The presence of FLC homologs in monocots opens new dimensions to understand, compare and retrace the evolution of vernalization pathways between monocots and dicots. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanism of vernalization-induced flowering along with epigenetic regulations in Arabidopsis and temperate cereals. A better understanding of cold-induced flowering will be helpful in crop breeding strategies to modify the vernalization requirement of economically-important temperate cereals. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

中文翻译：

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拟南芥和谷物春化的分子机制：开花基因座 C 及其同源物的作用

冬季植物品种只有在长时间寒冷后才能开花。这种现象被称为春化，并已在模式植物拟南芥和单子叶植物中得到广泛研究。通过抑制花激活基因，春化阻止了冬季开花。在拟南芥中，FLOWERING LOCUS C 或 FLC 是春化过程中的关键抑制因子，而在单子叶植物中，春化是通过 VRN1、VRN2 和 VRN3（或 FLOWERING LOCUS T）调节的。有趣的是，VRN 基因与 FLC 不同源，但发现 FLC 同源物在谷物的春化反应中具有重要作用。单子叶植物中 FLC 同源物的存在为理解、比较和追溯单子叶植物和双子叶植物之间春化途径的演变开辟了新的维度。在本次审查中，我们讨论了春化诱导开花的分子机制以及拟南芥和温带谷物的表观遗传调控。更好地了解冷诱导开花将有助于作物育种策略，以改变经济上重要的温带谷物的春化要求。本文受版权保护。版权所有。