What is it about?

Plants must constantly adapt to changes in their environment, from daily light–dark cycles to attacks by disease-causing microbes. To do this, they carefully control how genetic information is used. One important step involves editing RNA molecules before they are used to produce proteins, allowing a single gene to generate different messages and functions. In this study, we investigated a protein called SPLICING FACTOR 1 (SF1), which helps plants carry out this RNA editing process. We found that SF1 is essential for producing the correct RNA messages from many genes, particularly those involved in the plant’s internal biological clock and immune responses. When SF1 is not functioning properly, plants process RNA incorrectly, disrupting the timing of daily biological rhythms and weakening their ability to defend themselves against bacterial infection. Our work reveals how a single RNA-processing factor can influence fundamental aspects of plant biology, connecting molecular events inside cells with whole-plant traits such as timekeeping and disease resistance.

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Why is it important?

RNA processing is a fundamental step in gene regulation, but its contribution to whole-plant physiology is still not fully understood. Our findings show that SF1 acts as an important link between RNA processing and two essential plant functions: keeping time through the circadian clock and defending against pathogens. By revealing how plants control these processes at the RNA level, this work advances our understanding of how plants adapt to their environment. These insights also provide a foundation for future efforts to engineer beneficial traits through targeted manipulation of RNA processing, for example by using CRISPR-based approaches to modify specific splicing outcomes.

Perspectives

Completing this study was both a challenge and a rewarding journey. Each new dataset and analysis brought us closer to understanding how splicing is regulated in plants and how this process influences plant biology at multiple levels. One aspect I particularly value about this work is its breadth: from identifying sequence features that guide alternative splicing decisions to uncovering how these molecular events affect circadian rhythms and plant immunity. This project was also a great example of collaborative science. Bringing together different expertise and perspectives allowed us to tackle questions that would have been difficult to address from a single angle. The result is a study that advances our understanding of plant RNA processing while reminding us that scientific discovery is often a collective effort. Looking back, the challenges were many, but so were the opportunities to learn, collaborate, and enjoy the process of uncovering something new.

Julieta Mateos
Instituto de Fisiología, Biología Molecular y Neurociencias

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This page is a summary of: In vivo binding by Arabidopsis SPLICING FACTOR 1 shifts 3′ splice-site choice, regulating circadian rhythms and immunity in plants, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, June 2026, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2531955123.
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