植物会在特定的季节开花，即便是在不稳定的环境中。目前人们已经在分子水平上对与温度相关的开花时间进行了广泛的研究，但对不可预知环境下的基因表达却了解不多。因为气温并非完全与季节变化趋势一切，所以植物较难判断自然季节和环境变化。
日本东京大学的Shinichiro Aikawa和他的同事发现了一种使拟南芥记录过去6周内温度情况的基因。分析发现，该基因83%以上的表达变化与6周前的温度变化有关，而在此之前或之后的温度对基因表达都没有影响。这项研究对了解气候变化对植物的影响具有至关重要的作用。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原文出处：
PNAS doi: 10.1073/pnas.0914293107
Robust control of the seasonal expression of the Arabidopsis FLC gene in a fluctuating environment
Shinichiro Aikawaa,b, Masaki J. Kobayashic, Akiko Sataked,e, Kentaro K. Shimizuc, and Hiroshi Kudoha,b,1
aCenter for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Hirano 2-509-3, Otsu 520-2113, Japan;
bDepartment of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe University, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan;
cUniversity Research Priority Program (URPP) Systems Biology/Functional Genomics, Zürich–Basel Plant Science Center and Institute of Plant Biology, University of Zurich, CH-8008 Zurich, Switzerland;
dCreative Research Initiative “Sousei”, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 001-0021, Japan; and
ePrecursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (PRESTO), Japan Science and Technology Agency, 4-1-8 Honcho Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan
Plants flower in particular seasons even in natural, fluctuating environments. The molecular basis of temperature-dependent flowering-time regulation has been extensively studied, but little is known about how gene expression is controlled in natural environments. Without a memory of past temperatures, it would be difficult for plants to detect seasons in natural, noisy environments because temperature changes occurring within a few weeks are often inconsistent with seasonal trends. Our 2-y census of the expression of a temperature-dependent flowering-time gene, AhgFLC, in a natural population of perennial Arabidopsis halleri revealed that the regulatory system of this flowering-time gene extracts seasonal cues as if it memorizes temperatures over the past 6 wk. Time-series analysis revealed that as much as 83% of the variation in the AhgFLC expression is explained solely by the temperature for the previous 6 wk, but not by the temperatures over shorter or longer periods. The accuracy of our model in predicting the gene expression pattern under contrasting temperature regimes in the transplant experiments indicates that such modeling incorporating the molecular bases of flowering-time regulation will contribute to predicting plant responses to future climate changes.
