The PRR-EC complex and SWR1 chromatin remodeling complex function cooperatively to repress nighttime hypocotyl elongation by modulating PIF4 expression in Arabidopsis

The circadian clock entrained by environmental light-dark cycles enables plants to fine-tune diurnal growth and developmental responses.Here,we show that physical interactions among evening clock components,including PSEUDO-RESPONSE REGULATOR 5(PRR5),TIMING OF CAB EXPRESSION 1(TOC1),and the Evening Complex(EC)component EARLY FLOWERING 3(ELF3),define a diurnal repressive chromatin structure specifically at the PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTOR 4(PIF4)locus in Arabidopsis.These three clock components act interdependently as well as independently to repress nighttime hypocotyl elongation,as hypocotyl elongation rate dramatically increased specifically at nighttime in the prr5-1 toc1-21 elf3-1 mutant,concomitantly with a substantial increase in PIF4 expression.Transcriptional repression of PIF4 by ELF3,PRR5,and TOC1 is mediated by the SWI2/SNF2-RELATED(SWR1)chromatin remodeling complex,which incorporates histone H2A.Z at thePIF4 locus,facilitating robust epigenetic suppression ofPIF4 during the evening.Overall,these findings demonstrate that the PRR-EC-SWR1 complex represses hypocotyl elongation at night through a distinctive chromatin domain covering PIF4 chromatin.