Gene regulation underlying the vernalization response in annual and perennial plants

In this project, an RNA-seq time series was performed to study the gene expression regulation underlying the vernalization response in the annual species Arabidopsis thaliana, Arabis montbretiana and the perennial Arabis alpina. Annual plants were grown for 2 weeks before being vernalized for 12 weeks. Apices were harvested for RNA-seq analysis at 2 weeks in LD, 2,4,6,8,10 and 12 weeks in vernalization and 1 week after returning the plants to warm temperatures. For the perennial A.alpina, plants were first grown for 6 weeks under LD conditions and then vernalized for the same amount of time as the annuals. With the exception of the first timepoint (6 weeks in LD), apices of A.alpina plants were harvested at the same time points as the annuals.