SUMMARY 2026
The evolution of higher plants is an autoregulatory process.
Furthermore, Quantum Biology increasingly governs the outcome of evolutionary processes, as it co-activates short tandem repeats at splicing sites and even at crossover events. We will focus more on this topic during the just beginning year 2026. Especially the hidden heritage of some R2R2MYB factors, a class of plant transcription factors that regulate gene expression.
In recent years, Diplacus and other genera have been the focus of several genomic studies. A striking revelation from these studies is the close similarity observed among the anthocyanin-related MYB factors in their genomes. MYB factors can exist in two states: upregulated and downregulated. When MYB factors are upregulated, petals typically exhibit anthocyanin coloration; conversely, when they are downregulated, anthocyanin is absent. This indicates some diversity among these states.
Is there a specific instance that defines flower color? Yes, there is. Interestingly, the primary functional differences are found not in the protein-coding genes (exons) but in the non-coding regions (introns). These introns contain functional elements, known as STRS, which may act as coactivators for the MYB factors.
We selected three TFs (R2R3MYB2, MYb4, and MYB5 = MaMyb1) for further details. All three have STRs (short tandem repeats) of variable length in their introns. When extended sufficiently, these STRs could form hairpin miRNA, postulated to be crucial for MYB gene activity in epidermal tissue. The STRs were short throughout all varieties in yellow-flowered forms, whereas in red-flowered forms, the STRs are more extended and better hairpin builders than the former. It is argued that STRs within introns are heritable and semi-reversible, and that they have been shown to coactivate gene expression.
More details can be seen in the IGV (Integrative Genome Viewer) for those MYBs. The STRs may vary in length, but more haplotypes could often be found than just two, indicating that somatic genetic changes have occurred.
Conclusions:
All coastal species of Diplacus (sect. Diplacus) share a similar molecular genetic structure. The R2R3MYB2 gene is organized in a modular fashion, consisting of exons and introns. The exons form the protein structure of MYB, while the introns, especially the STRs, function as regulatory units and serve as functional activator elements.
Moreover, the Antirrhinum pseudomajus/striatum complex exhibits significant similarities. In ROS1, an anthocyanin R2R3 MYB, the STR can be identified between MYB coding sequences that demonstrate considerable variation and are thought to have regulatory and activating effects on the MYB factor.
Transcription machinery for an anthocyanin
activating R2R3MYB (postulated)
It is suggested that the cis-regulatory element STR (5), located in the first or second intron of R2R3-Myb, can undergo editing through a multi-step enzymatic process (trans). Please consult MISOPATES for more details.
(not shown) The results of which can be applied to germinal cells if necessary.
Recently, we discovered a fascinating fact: the lengths of short tandem repeats (STRs) in the introns of the R2R3MYB gene can vary from cell to cell within the same species. There are different types of somatic mutation variations of the STRs:
A) the STRs vary symmetrically, either increasing or decreasing in length,
B) the STRs vary asymmetrically, resulting in either longer or shorter sequences.
Because these somatic mutations occur in genomic DNA, they are passed on and can influence the activity of the R2R3MYB gene in offspring. We speculate that these vectorized somatic mutations may result from a quantum interaction between DNA polymerase and RNA polymerase during R2R3MYB synthesis.