Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-c4f8m Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-25T02:18:34.978Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Molecular cloning and characterization of a LEAFY-like gene highly expressed in developing soybean seeds

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 December 2007

Qingchang Meng ,
Chunhong Zhang ,
Fang Huang ,
Junyi Gai  and
Deyue Yu
Qingchang Meng
Affiliation:
National Center for Soybean Improvement, National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing210095, China
Chunhong Zhang
Affiliation:
National Center for Soybean Improvement, National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing210095, China
Fang Huang
Affiliation:
National Center for Soybean Improvement, National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing210095, China
Junyi Gai
Affiliation:
National Center for Soybean Improvement, National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing210095, China
Deyue Yu*
Affiliation:
National Center for Soybean Improvement, National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing210095, China
*
*Correspondence Fax: 86-25-84396410 Email: dyyu@njau.edu.cn
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

LEAFY (LFY)-like proteins are plant-specific transcription factors that play essential roles in plant growth and development. In this study, a LEAFY homologue in soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], designated as GmLFY, was cloned from inflorescences by the rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) method. Sequence analysis showed that GmLFY cDNA contained a 1221 bp open reading frame, encoding 407 amino acid residues with typical characteristics of transcription factors. Subcellular localization in onion epidermal cells indicated that GmLFY protein was located in the nucleus. Analysis of the GmLFY genomic structure showed that the GmLFY gene has two introns with similar spliced sites as LFY-like genes in other plants. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis indicated that GmLFY was predominantly expressed in reproductive organs, such as inflorescences, pods and developing seeds. Further analysis showed that the expression level of GmLFY was higher in the middle stage than in the early or late stages of seed development, suggesting an essential regulatory role of GmLFY in soybean seed development.

Keywords

Glycine maxLEAFYseed developmentsoybeantranscription factor
Type
Short Communication
Information
Seed Science Research , Volume 17 , Issue 4 , December 2007 , pp. 297 - 302
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2007

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aeschbacher, R.A., Müller, J., Boller, T. and Wiemken, A. (1999) Purification of the trehalase GMTRE1 from soybean nodules and cloning of its cDNA. GMTRE1 is expressed at a low level in multiple tissues. Plant Physiology 119, 489–496.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Altschul, S.F., Madden, T.L., Schaffer, A.A., Zhang, J.H., Zhang, Z., Miller, W. and Lipman, D.J. (1997) Gapped BLAST and PSI-BLAST: a new generation of protein database search programs. Nucleic Acids Research 25, 3389–3402.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beilinson, V., Moskalenko, O.V., Ritchie, R.D. and Nielsen, N.C. (2005) Differentially expressed genes during seed development in soybean. Physiologia Plantarum 123, 321–330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blázquez, M.A. and Weigel, D. (2000) Integration of floral inductive signals in Arabidopsis. Nature 404, 889–892.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Busch, M.A., Bomblies, K. and Weigel, D. (1999) Activation of a floral homeotic gene in Arabidopsis. Science 285, 585–587.Google Scholar
Coen, E.S., Romero, J.M., Doyle, S., Elliot, R., Murphy, G. and Carpenter, R. (1990) floricaula: a homeotic gene required for flower development in Antirrhinum majus. Cell 63, 1311–1322.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dong, Z.C., Zhao, Z., Liu, C., Luo, J., Yang, J., Huang, W., Hu, X., Wang, T.L. and Luo, D. (2005) Floral patterning in Lotus japonicus. Plant Physiology 137, 1272–1282.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Esumi, T., Tao, R. and Yonemori, K. (2005) Isolation of LEAFY and TERMINAL FLOWER 1 homologues from six fruit tree species in the subfamily Maloideae of the Rosaceae. Sexual Plant Reproduction 17, 277–287.Google Scholar
Fehr, W.R., Caviness, C.E., Burmood, D.T. and Pennington, J.S. (1971) Stage of development descriptions for soybeans, Glycine max (L.) Merrill. Crop Science 11, 929–931.Google Scholar
Hofer, J., Turner, L., Hellens, R., Ambrose, M., Matthews, P., Michael, A. and Ellis, N. (1997) UNIFOLIATA regulates leaf and flower morphogenesis in pea. Current Biology 7, 581–587.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jack, T. (2004) Molecular and genetic mechanisms of floral control. Plant Cell 16, S1–S7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kozak, M. (1999) Initiation of translation in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Gene 234, 187–208.Google Scholar
Kyozuka, J., Kobayashi, T., Morita, M. and Shimamoto, K. (2000) Spatially and temporally regulated expression of rice MADS box genes with similarity to Arabidopsis class A, B, and C genes. Plant and Cell Physiology 41, 710–718.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maizel, A., Busch, M.A., Tanahashi, T., Perkovic, J., Kato, M., Hasebe, M. and Weigel, D. (2005) The floral regulator LEAFY evolves by substitutions in the DNA binding domain. Science 308, 260–263.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mitchell, P.J. and Tjian, R. (1989) Transcriptional regulation in mammalian cells by sequence-specific DNA binding proteins. Science 245, 371–378.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Niu, X.G., Chen, Q.J., Liu, Q. and Wang, X.C. (2005) Cloning, subcellular localization and expression analysis of an inositol 1,3,4-trisphosphate 5/6-kinase-like gene in Oryza sativa. Journal of Agricultural Biotechnology 13, 815–816(in Chinese with English abstract).Google Scholar
Ratcliffe, O.J., Bradley, D.J. and Coen, E.S. (1999) Separation of shoot and floral identity in Arabidopsis. Development 126, 1109–1120.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Riechmann, J.L. and Ratcliffe, O.J. (2000) A genomic perspective on plant transcription factors. Current Opinion in Plant Biology 3, 423–434.Google Scholar
Sambrook, J., Fritsch, E.F. and Maniatis, T. (1989) Molecular cloning. A laboratory manual (2nd edition). Plainview, NY, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.Google Scholar
Sessions, A., Yanofsky, M.F. and Weigel, D. (2000) Cell–cell signaling and movement by the floral transcription factors LEAFY and APETALA1. Science 289, 779–782.Google Scholar
Shitsukawa, N., Takagishi, A., Ikari, C., Takumi, S. and Murai, K. (2006) WFL, a wheat FLORICAULA/LEAFY ortholog, is associated with spikelet formation as lateral branch of the inflorescence meristem. Genes and Genetic Systems 81, 13–20.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wada, M., Cao, Q., Kotoda, N., Soejima, J. and Masuda, T. (2002) Apple has two orthologues of FLORICAULA/LEAFY involved in flowering. Plant Molecular Biology 49, 567–577.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wagner, D., Sablowski, R.W.M. and Meyerowitz, E.M. (1999) Transcriptional activation of APETALA1 by LEAFY. Science 285, 582–584.Google Scholar
Weaver, R.F. and Hedrick, P.W. (1997) Genetics (3rd edition). Dubuque, Iowa, William C. Brown Publishing.Google Scholar
Weigel, D., Alvarez, J., Smyth, D.R., Yanofsky, M.F. and Meyerowitz, E.M. (1992) LEAFY controls floral meristem identity in Arabidopsis. Cell 69, 843–859.Google Scholar
Wu, X.L., Dinneny, J.R., Crawford, K.M., Rhee, Y., Citovsky, V., Zambryski, P.C. and Weigel, D. (2003) Modes of intercellular transcription factor movement in the Arabidopsis apex. Development 130, 3735–3745.Google Scholar