Plant P-bodies in post-transcriptional control: Composition, dynamics, and context-dependent roles

TL;DR

Plant P-bodies are dynamic structures that regulate mRNA in response to development and stress, acting as hubs for gene regulation.

Contribution

This paper provides a comprehensive review of plant P-bodies, emphasizing their unique roles and mechanisms compared to other organisms.

Findings

Plant P-bodies are regulated by hormonal signals like ABA and stress conditions.

P-bodies can function as decay sites or buffering sites for mRNAs depending on the context.

Recent advances show post-translational and RNA modifications influence mRNA targeting in P-bodies.

Abstract

Processing bodies (P-bodies, PBs) are cytoplasmic ribonucleoprotein condensates that concentrate mRNA-decay and translation-repression factors. In plants, PBs share core machinery with other eukaryotes but exhibit unique, context-dependent features that distinguish them from their yeast and mammalian counterparts. These properties are shaped by direct modulation from hormonal signaling (e.g., abscisic acid [ABA]) and stress physiology, underscoring their specialized roles in adaptation. Here we synthesize plant-focused evidence on PB composition, liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS)-driven assembly, and their coupling to decapping-dependent and co-translational decay pathways. We delineate the contexts in which PBs act as decay hotspots versus buffering sites for non-translating mRNAs, and explicitly distinguish plant findings from inferences derived from yeast/animal systems. We also integrate recent advances on post-translational modifications (e.g., mitogen-activated protein kinase-dependent DCP1 phosphorylation) and RNA modifications (m6A/ECT8) in selective mRNA targeting. Finally, we outline open questions regarding the spatial organization of decay, PB-stress granule crosstalk, and hormonal control mechanisms, and highlight methodological avenues to address them. Overall, plant PBs are presented as dynamic regulatory hubs that help tune post-transcriptional control in response to developmental and environmental cues, with their underlying mechanisms increasingly resolved by interdisciplinary strategies combining live-cell imaging, quantitative proteomics, and CRISPR-based genetics.

Plant P-bodies are dynamic cytoplasmic ribonucleoprotein condensates that regulate mRNA fate during development and in response to stress. This review synthesizes current knowledge of their composition and signaling-mediated assembly, and evaluates their roles in mRNA decay versus translational buffering. Emerging evidence positions plant P-bodies as context-dependent regulatory hubs, rather than obligate decay sites, in post-transcriptional gene regulation.

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