Description
We identified and characterized a rice epigenetic mutant Epi-df which exhibits a dwarf stature and various floral defects that are inherited in a dominant fashion. We demonstrated that Epi-df participates in Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) mediated gene silencing. Epigenetic mutations results in ectopic expression of Epi-df and pleiotropic developmental defects in mutant plants. Moreover, ectopic expression of Epi-df leads to mis-regulated H3K27me3 and changed expression of hundreds of genes involved in a wide range of biological processes.