Mark Aarts | Wageningen University (original) (raw)

Papers by Mark Aarts

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2020

In the last decade heavy metal hyperaccumulator plants have been increasingly studied, mainly bec... more In the last decade heavy metal hyperaccumulator plants have been increasingly studied, mainly because of their potential use in phytore-mediation. Thlaspi caerulescens is an attractive model hyperaccumulator plant, because it accommodates a high of intra-specific variation in the degrees and metal-specificity patterns of tolerance and accumulation. In this review we give an overview of recent progress made in the genetics and genomics of heavy metal hyperaccumulation in this species. QTL analysis for zinc and cadmium accumulation in segregating inter-accession crosses demonstrated that these traits are controlled by multiple genes and that there are accession-specific accumulation mechanisms with distinct metal-affinity patterns. Cross-species transcriptome analyses have revealed a large number of genes with differential expression between hyperaccumulators and non-hyperaccumulators. Many of those genes are known to be involved in metal homeostasis, and an even larger number might play a role in this process. However, most of the differentially expressed genes have probably no role in metal homeostasis, owing to the fact that species with different life history and ecology are compared. To confirm the role of candidate genes, mutant research is necessary, but not yet done in hyperaccumulators. In the absence of physical maps and full genome sequences of hyperaccumulators, comparative genomics are indispensable. Co-linearity and micro-synteny analysis should enable the identification of the genes responsible for QTL for accumulation traits in intra-and inter-specific crosses.

Molecular and General Genetics, 1995

The Enhancer-Inhibitor (En-I), also known as Suppressor-mutator (Spm-dSpm), transposable element ... more The Enhancer-Inhibitor (En-I), also known as Suppressor-mutator (Spm-dSpm), transposable element system of maize was modified and introduced into Arabidopsis by Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation. A stable En/Spm transposase source under control of the CaMV 35S promoter mediated frequent transposition of I/dSpm elements. Transposition occurred continuously throughout plant development over at least seven consecutive plant generations after transformation. New insertions were found at both linked and unlinked positions relative to a transposon donor site. The independent transposition frequency was defined as a transposition parameter, which quantified the rate of unique insertion events and ranged from 7.8% to 29.2% in different populations. An increase as well as a decrease in I/dSpm element copy number was seen at the individual plant level, but not at the population level after several plant generations. The continuous, frequent transposition observed for this transposon system makes it an attractive tool for use in gene tagging in Arabidopsis.

Go to AGRIS search. Try it! Identification of genes for biofortification: Genetic and molecular a... more Go to AGRIS search. Try it! Identification of genes for biofortification: Genetic and molecular analysis of mineral accumulation in Arabidopsis thaliana and other plant species. ...

Frontiers in Plant Science

Noccaea caerulescens (Nc) exhibits a very high constitutive expression of the heavy metal transpo... more Noccaea caerulescens (Nc) exhibits a very high constitutive expression of the heavy metal transporting ATPase, HMA4, as compared to the non-hyperaccumulator Arabidopsis thaliana (At), due to copy number expansion and altered cis-regulation. We screened a BAC library for HMA4 and found that HMA4 is triplicated in the genome of a N. caerulescens accession from a former Zn mine near La Calamine (LC), Belgium. We amplified multiple HMA4 promoter sequences from three calamine N. caerulescens accessions, and expressed AtHMA4 and different NcHMA4 cDNAs under At and Nc HMA4 promoters in the A. thaliana (Col) hma2hma4 double mutant. Transgenic lines expressing HMA4 under the At promoter were always fully complemented for root-to-shoot Zn translocation and developed normally at a 2-μM Zn supply, whereas the lines expressing HMA4 under Nc promoters usually showed only slightly enhanced root to shoot Zn translocation rates in comparison with the double mutant, probably owing to ectopic expressi...

Plant Cell and Environment, 2004

Naturally occurring genetic variation for contents of cationic minerals in seeds of Arabidopsis t... more Naturally occurring genetic variation for contents of cationic minerals in seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana was studied by screening a series of accessions (ecotypes) for Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Zn, and for total contents of P. Variation was observed for all minerals and correlations between contents of various minerals were present, most noticeably between Ca and Mg, P and

Frontiers in plant science, 2013

Plant species with the capacity to tolerate heavy metals are potentially useful for phytoremediat... more Plant species with the capacity to tolerate heavy metals are potentially useful for phytoremediation since they have adapted to survive and reproduce under toxic conditions and to accumulate high metal concentrations. Gomphrena claussenii Moq., a South-American species belonging to the Amaranthaceae, is found at a zinc (Zn) mining area in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Through soil and hydroponic experiments, the metal tolerance and accumulation capacities of G. claussenii were assessed and the effects on physiological characteristics were compared with a closely related non-tolerant species, G. elegans Mart. G. claussenii plants grown in soil sampled at the Zn smelting area accumulated up to 5318μgg(-) (1) of Zn and 287 μg g(-) (1) of cadmium (Cd) in shoot dry biomass after 30 days of exposure. Plants were grown in hydroponics containing up to 3000 μM of Zn and 100 μM of Cd for G. claussenii and 100 μM of Zn and 5 μM of Cd for G. elegans. G. claussenii proved to be an extremely...

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2014

The metal hyperaccumulator Noccaea caerulescens is an established model to study the adaptation o... more The metal hyperaccumulator Noccaea caerulescens is an established model to study the adaptation of plants to metalliferous soils. Various comparators have been used in these studies. The choice of suitable comparators is important and depends on the hypothesis to be tested and methods to be used. In high-throughput analyses such as microarray, N. caerulescens has been compared to non-tolerant, non-accumulator plants like Arabidopsis thaliana or Thlaspi arvense rather than to the related hypertolerant or hyperaccumulator plants. An underutilized source is N. caerulescens populations with considerable variation in their capacity to accumulate and tolerate metals. Whole transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq) is revealing interesting variation in their gene expression profiles. Combining physiological characteristics of N. caerulescens accessions with their RNA-Seq has a great potential to provide detailed insight into the underlying molecular mechanisms, including entirely new gene products. In this review we will critically consider comparative transcriptome analyses carried out to explore metal hyperaccumulation and hypertolerance of N. caerulescens, and demonstrate the potential of RNA-Seq analysis as a tool in evolutionary genomics.

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2014

Phytochemistry, 2015

Glucosinolates are secondary plant compounds typically found in members of the Brassicaceae and a... more Glucosinolates are secondary plant compounds typically found in members of the Brassicaceae and a few other plant families. Usually each plant species contains a specific subset of the ∼130 different glucosinolates identified to date. However, intraspecific variation in glucosinolate profiles is commonly found. Sinalbin (4-hydroxybenzyl glucosinolate) so far has been identified as the main glucosinolate of the heavy metal accumulating plant species Noccaea caerulescens (Brassicaceae). However, a screening of 13 N. caerulescens populations revealed that in 10 populations a structurally related glucosinolate was found as the major component. Based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry analyses of the intact glucosinolate as well as of the products formed after enzymatic conversion by sulfatase or myrosinase, this compound was identified as 4-α-rhamnosyloxy benzyl glucosinolate (glucomoringin). So far, glucomoringin had only been reported as the main glucosinolate o...

International journal of molecular sciences, 2013

The genetic basis of the wide variation for nutritional traits in Brassica rapa is largely unknow... more The genetic basis of the wide variation for nutritional traits in Brassica rapa is largely unknown. A new Recombinant Inbred Line (RIL) population was profiled using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) analysis to detect quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling seed tocopherol and seedling metabolite concentrations. RIL population parent L58 had a higher level of glucosinolates and phenylpropanoids, whereas levels of sucrose, glucose and glutamate were higher in the other RIL population parent, R-o-18. QTL related to seed tocopherol (α-, β-, γ-, δ-, α-⁄γ- and total tocopherol) concentrations were detected on chromosomes A3, A6, A9 and A10, explaining 11%-35% of the respective variation. The locus on A3 co-locates with the BrVTE1gene, encoding tocopherol cyclase. NMR spectroscopy identified the presence of organic/amino acid, sugar/glucosinolate and aromatic compounds in seedlings. QTL positions were obtained for most of the identified...

Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research, 2013

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2020

In the last decade heavy metal hyperaccumulator plants have been increasingly studied, mainly bec... more In the last decade heavy metal hyperaccumulator plants have been increasingly studied, mainly because of their potential use in phytore-mediation. Thlaspi caerulescens is an attractive model hyperaccumulator plant, because it accommodates a high of intra-specific variation in the degrees and metal-specificity patterns of tolerance and accumulation. In this review we give an overview of recent progress made in the genetics and genomics of heavy metal hyperaccumulation in this species. QTL analysis for zinc and cadmium accumulation in segregating inter-accession crosses demonstrated that these traits are controlled by multiple genes and that there are accession-specific accumulation mechanisms with distinct metal-affinity patterns. Cross-species transcriptome analyses have revealed a large number of genes with differential expression between hyperaccumulators and non-hyperaccumulators. Many of those genes are known to be involved in metal homeostasis, and an even larger number might play a role in this process. However, most of the differentially expressed genes have probably no role in metal homeostasis, owing to the fact that species with different life history and ecology are compared. To confirm the role of candidate genes, mutant research is necessary, but not yet done in hyperaccumulators. In the absence of physical maps and full genome sequences of hyperaccumulators, comparative genomics are indispensable. Co-linearity and micro-synteny analysis should enable the identification of the genes responsible for QTL for accumulation traits in intra-and inter-specific crosses.

Molecular and General Genetics, 1995

The Enhancer-Inhibitor (En-I), also known as Suppressor-mutator (Spm-dSpm), transposable element ... more The Enhancer-Inhibitor (En-I), also known as Suppressor-mutator (Spm-dSpm), transposable element system of maize was modified and introduced into Arabidopsis by Agrobacterium tumefaciens transformation. A stable En/Spm transposase source under control of the CaMV 35S promoter mediated frequent transposition of I/dSpm elements. Transposition occurred continuously throughout plant development over at least seven consecutive plant generations after transformation. New insertions were found at both linked and unlinked positions relative to a transposon donor site. The independent transposition frequency was defined as a transposition parameter, which quantified the rate of unique insertion events and ranged from 7.8% to 29.2% in different populations. An increase as well as a decrease in I/dSpm element copy number was seen at the individual plant level, but not at the population level after several plant generations. The continuous, frequent transposition observed for this transposon system makes it an attractive tool for use in gene tagging in Arabidopsis.

Go to AGRIS search. Try it! Identification of genes for biofortification: Genetic and molecular a... more Go to AGRIS search. Try it! Identification of genes for biofortification: Genetic and molecular analysis of mineral accumulation in Arabidopsis thaliana and other plant species. ...

Frontiers in Plant Science

Noccaea caerulescens (Nc) exhibits a very high constitutive expression of the heavy metal transpo... more Noccaea caerulescens (Nc) exhibits a very high constitutive expression of the heavy metal transporting ATPase, HMA4, as compared to the non-hyperaccumulator Arabidopsis thaliana (At), due to copy number expansion and altered cis-regulation. We screened a BAC library for HMA4 and found that HMA4 is triplicated in the genome of a N. caerulescens accession from a former Zn mine near La Calamine (LC), Belgium. We amplified multiple HMA4 promoter sequences from three calamine N. caerulescens accessions, and expressed AtHMA4 and different NcHMA4 cDNAs under At and Nc HMA4 promoters in the A. thaliana (Col) hma2hma4 double mutant. Transgenic lines expressing HMA4 under the At promoter were always fully complemented for root-to-shoot Zn translocation and developed normally at a 2-μM Zn supply, whereas the lines expressing HMA4 under Nc promoters usually showed only slightly enhanced root to shoot Zn translocation rates in comparison with the double mutant, probably owing to ectopic expressi...

Plant Cell and Environment, 2004

Naturally occurring genetic variation for contents of cationic minerals in seeds of Arabidopsis t... more Naturally occurring genetic variation for contents of cationic minerals in seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana was studied by screening a series of accessions (ecotypes) for Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Zn, and for total contents of P. Variation was observed for all minerals and correlations between contents of various minerals were present, most noticeably between Ca and Mg, P and

Frontiers in plant science, 2013

Plant species with the capacity to tolerate heavy metals are potentially useful for phytoremediat... more Plant species with the capacity to tolerate heavy metals are potentially useful for phytoremediation since they have adapted to survive and reproduce under toxic conditions and to accumulate high metal concentrations. Gomphrena claussenii Moq., a South-American species belonging to the Amaranthaceae, is found at a zinc (Zn) mining area in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Through soil and hydroponic experiments, the metal tolerance and accumulation capacities of G. claussenii were assessed and the effects on physiological characteristics were compared with a closely related non-tolerant species, G. elegans Mart. G. claussenii plants grown in soil sampled at the Zn smelting area accumulated up to 5318μgg(-) (1) of Zn and 287 μg g(-) (1) of cadmium (Cd) in shoot dry biomass after 30 days of exposure. Plants were grown in hydroponics containing up to 3000 μM of Zn and 100 μM of Cd for G. claussenii and 100 μM of Zn and 5 μM of Cd for G. elegans. G. claussenii proved to be an extremely...

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2014

The metal hyperaccumulator Noccaea caerulescens is an established model to study the adaptation o... more The metal hyperaccumulator Noccaea caerulescens is an established model to study the adaptation of plants to metalliferous soils. Various comparators have been used in these studies. The choice of suitable comparators is important and depends on the hypothesis to be tested and methods to be used. In high-throughput analyses such as microarray, N. caerulescens has been compared to non-tolerant, non-accumulator plants like Arabidopsis thaliana or Thlaspi arvense rather than to the related hypertolerant or hyperaccumulator plants. An underutilized source is N. caerulescens populations with considerable variation in their capacity to accumulate and tolerate metals. Whole transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq) is revealing interesting variation in their gene expression profiles. Combining physiological characteristics of N. caerulescens accessions with their RNA-Seq has a great potential to provide detailed insight into the underlying molecular mechanisms, including entirely new gene products. In this review we will critically consider comparative transcriptome analyses carried out to explore metal hyperaccumulation and hypertolerance of N. caerulescens, and demonstrate the potential of RNA-Seq analysis as a tool in evolutionary genomics.

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2014

Phytochemistry, 2015

Glucosinolates are secondary plant compounds typically found in members of the Brassicaceae and a... more Glucosinolates are secondary plant compounds typically found in members of the Brassicaceae and a few other plant families. Usually each plant species contains a specific subset of the ∼130 different glucosinolates identified to date. However, intraspecific variation in glucosinolate profiles is commonly found. Sinalbin (4-hydroxybenzyl glucosinolate) so far has been identified as the main glucosinolate of the heavy metal accumulating plant species Noccaea caerulescens (Brassicaceae). However, a screening of 13 N. caerulescens populations revealed that in 10 populations a structurally related glucosinolate was found as the major component. Based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry analyses of the intact glucosinolate as well as of the products formed after enzymatic conversion by sulfatase or myrosinase, this compound was identified as 4-α-rhamnosyloxy benzyl glucosinolate (glucomoringin). So far, glucomoringin had only been reported as the main glucosinolate o...

International journal of molecular sciences, 2013

The genetic basis of the wide variation for nutritional traits in Brassica rapa is largely unknow... more The genetic basis of the wide variation for nutritional traits in Brassica rapa is largely unknown. A new Recombinant Inbred Line (RIL) population was profiled using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) analysis to detect quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling seed tocopherol and seedling metabolite concentrations. RIL population parent L58 had a higher level of glucosinolates and phenylpropanoids, whereas levels of sucrose, glucose and glutamate were higher in the other RIL population parent, R-o-18. QTL related to seed tocopherol (α-, β-, γ-, δ-, α-⁄γ- and total tocopherol) concentrations were detected on chromosomes A3, A6, A9 and A10, explaining 11%-35% of the respective variation. The locus on A3 co-locates with the BrVTE1gene, encoding tocopherol cyclase. NMR spectroscopy identified the presence of organic/amino acid, sugar/glucosinolate and aromatic compounds in seedlings. QTL positions were obtained for most of the identified...

Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research, 2013