Snf1-RELATED KINASE1-Controlled C/S1-bZIP Signaling Activates Alternative Mitochondrial Metabolic Pathways to Ensure Plant Survival in Extended Darkness

Abstract

Sustaining energy homeostasis is of pivotal importance for all living organisms. In Arabidopsis thaliana, evolutionarily conserved SnRK1 kinases (Snf1-RELATED KINASE1) control metabolic adaptation during low energy stress. To unravel starvation-induced transcriptional mechanisms, we performed transcriptome studies of inducible knockdown lines and found that S₁-basic leucine zipper transcription factors (S₁-bZIPs) control a defined subset of genes downstream of SnRK1. For example, S₁-bZIPs coordinate the expression of genes involved in branched-chain amino acid catabolism, which constitutes an alternative mitochondrial respiratory pathway that is crucial for plant survival during starvation. Molecular analyses defined S₁-bZIPs as SnRK1-dependent regulators that directly control transcription via binding to G-box promoter elements. Moreover, SnRK1 triggers phosphorylation of group C-bZIPs and the formation of C/S₁-heterodimers and, thus, the recruitment of SnRK1 directly to target promoters. Subsequently, the C/S₁-bZIP-SnRK1 complex interacts with the histone acetylation machinery to remodel chromatin and facilitate transcription. Taken together, this work reveals molecular mechanisms underlying how energy deprivation is transduced to reprogram gene expression, leading to metabolic adaptation upon stress.