Engagement of Transcription Cofactors in the Developmental Processes and Response to Environmental Cues

Transcription of plant genes is a very tightly regulated process as it determines the fate of a cell, tissue, organ, and the whole plant. A plethora of transcription factors coordinate with each other to regulate the spatio-temporal transcription profile of their target genes. Transcriptional cofactors are cellular factors that connect the sequence-specific DNA binding transcription factors to the general transcriptional machinery, either directly or through modifications of chromatin structure. Although most of the information on cofactor functioning is available from yeast and animal studies, in the last decade, plant researchers have also started taking interest in understanding the mechanisms employed by plant transcriptional cofactors to regulate gene expression. The transcriptional cofactors can modulate several plant processes including cell differentiation, organ development, and the response to environmental factors. In this Research Topic, we are inviting articles that describe the involvement of transcriptional cofactors in different developmental processes in plants and the responses of plants to different environmental cues.

Transcription cofactors play a critical role in the regulation of transcription. They can change the epigenetic modifications and so affect the overall chromatin structure. Transcription cofactors can also participate in splicing, gene looping, and phase separation to ultimately fine-tune the process of transcription. This is an emerging area where plant scientists are now delineating the role of transcription cofactors in different processes like cell differentiation, organogenesis, and overall plant growth and development. Shape and architecture of plant organs have been linked to a few cofactors. They have been also implicated in modulating the effect of different environmental factors. There are indications that different signaling cascades converge on one or more cofactors and thus affect the pattern of gene expression.

We are looking for original research employing molecular, biophysical, structural, cellular, genetic, genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics approaches to understand the function of transcription cofactors in plants. We will cover, but will not be limited to, the following topics.

• Physiological relevance of cofactor functioning in plants
• Mechanistic details of functioning of cofactors in plants
• Structural insight of functioning of cofactors in plants
• Signaling pathways requiring cofactors in plants
• Crosstalk between different hormones facilitated by cofactors
• Transcription cofactors in biotic stress responses
• Transcription cofactors in abiotic stress responses
• Evolution of transcription cofactors

Reviews, mini reviews, and perspectives are also welcome.