Ca-stimulated secretion of alpha-amylase during development in barley aleurone protoplasts

The effects of gibberellic acid (GA₃) and Ca²⁺ on the synthesis and secretion of α-amylase from protoplasts of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Himalaya) aleurone were studied. Protoplasts undergo dramatic morphological changes whether or not the incubation medium contains GA₃, CaCl₂, or both. Incubation of protoplasts in medium containing both GA₃ and Ca²⁺, however, causes an increase in the α-amylase activity of both incubation medium and tissue extract relative to controls incubated in GA₃ or Ca²⁺ alone. Isoelectric focusing shows that adding Ca²⁺ to incubation media containing GA₃ increases the levels of α-amylase isozymes having high isoelectric points (pI). In the presence of GA₃ alone, only isozymes with low pIs accumulate. The increase in α-amylase activity in the incubation medium begins after 36 hours of incubation, and secretion is complete after about 72 hours. Protoplasts require continuous exposure to Ca²⁺ to maintain elevated levels of α-amylase release. Immunoelectrophoresis shows that Ca²⁺ stimulates the release of low-pI α-amylase isozymes by 3-fold and high-pI isozymes by 30-fold over controls incubated in GA₃ alone. Immunochemical data also show that the half-maximum concentration for this response is between 5 and 10 millimolar CaCl₂. The response is not specific for Ca²⁺ since Sr²⁺ can substitute, although less effectively than Ca²⁺. Pulse-labeling experiments show that α-amylase isozymes produced by aleurone protoplasts in response to GA₃ and Ca²⁺ are newly synthesized. The effects of Ca²⁺ on the process of enzyme synthesis and secretion is not mediated via an effect of this ion on α-amylase stability or on protoplast viability. We conclude that Ca²⁺ directly affects the process of enzyme synthesis and transport. Experiments with protoplasts also argue against the direct involvement of the cell wall in Ca²⁺-stimulated enzyme release.     

Screening for barley mutants with altered hormone sensitivity in their aleurone layers

A method, based on the diffusion assay of α-amylase on agar plates, was developed to screen for barley (Himalaya) mutants with altered sensitivity to gibberellic acid (GA₃) or abscisic acid (ABA) in their aleurone layers. The seeds produced by sodium azide-mutagenized barley were screened for their ability to synthesize and secrete α-amylase when treated with different combinations of hormones. Various GA₃-insensitive or supersensitive, ABA-insensitive, temperature-dependent GA₃-insensitive, and constitutive mutants have been identified. Several stable mutants with altered GA₃ sensitivity were recovered. Two of the homozygous GA₃-insensitive mutants have been preliminarily characterized. The GA₃-enhanced production of α-amylase and release of phosphatase are hampered in these mutants. However, they have normal stem height, and the uptake of GA₃ by their aleurone layers appears to be the same as that of wild-type barley. They are most likely regulatory mutants affecting both α-amylase synthesis and phosphatase release.     

Differential synthesis in vitro of barley aleurone and starchy endosperm proteins

To widen the selection of proteins for gene expression studies in barley seeds, experiments were performed to identify proteins whose synthesis is differentially regulated in developing and germinating seed tissues. The in vitro synthesis of nine distinct barley proteins was compared using mRNAs from isolated endosperm and aleurone tissues (developing and mature grain) and from cultured (germinating) aleurone layers treated with abscisic acid (ABA) and GA₃. B and C hordein polypeptides and the salt-soluble proteins β-amylase, protein Z, protein C, the chymotrypsin inhibitors (CI-1 and 2), the α-amylase/subtilisin inhibitor (ASI) and the inhibitor of animal cell-free protein synthesis systems (PSI) were synthesized with mRNA from developing starchy endosperm tissue. Of these proteins, β-amylase, protein Z, and CI- 1 and 2 were also synthesized with mRNA from developing aleurone cells, but ASI, PSI, and protein C were not. CI-1 and also a probable amylase/protease inhibitor (PAPI) were synthesized at high levels with mRNAs from late developing and mature aleurone. These results show that mRNAs encoding PAPI and CI-1 survive seed dessication and are long-lived in aleurone cells. Thus, expression of genes encoding ASI, PSI, protein C, and PAPI is tissue and stage-specific during seed development. Only ASI, CI-1, and PAPI were synthesized in significant amounts with mRNA from cultured aleurone layers. The levels of synthesis of PAPI and CI-1 were independent of hormone treatment. In contrast, synthesis of α-amylase (included as control) and of ASI showed antagonistic hormonal control: while GA promotes and ABA reduces accumulation of mRNA for α-amylase, these hormones have the opposite effect on ASI mRNA levels.     

Control of alpha-amylase mRNA accumulation by gibberellic Acid and calcium in barley aleurone layers

Pulse-labeling of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Himalaya) aleurone layers incubated for 13 hours in 2.5 micromolar gibberellic acid (GA₃) with or without 5 millimolar CaCl₂ shows that α-amylase isozymes 3 and 4 are not synthesized in vivo in the absence of Ca²⁺. A cDNA clone for α-amylase was isolated and used to measure α-amylase mRNA levels in aleurone layers incubated in the presence and absence of Ca²⁺. No difference was observed in α-amylase mRNA levels between layers incubated for 12 hours in 2.5 micromolar GA₃ with 5 millimolar CaCl₂ and layers incubated in GA₃ alone. RNA isolated from layers incubated for 12 hours in GA₃ with and without Ca²⁺ was translated in vitro and was found to produce the same complement of translation products regardless of the presence of Ca²⁺ in the incubation medium. Immunoprecipitation of translation products showed that the RNA for α-amylase synthesized in Ca²⁺-deprived aleurone layers was translatable. Ca²⁺ is required for the synthesis of α-amylase isozymes 3 and 4 at a step after mRNA accumulation and processing.     

Dormancy of the barley grain is correlated with gibberellic Acid responsiveness of the isolated aleurone layer

The relationship between barley grain dormancy and gibberellic acid (GA₃) responsiveness of aleurone layers has been investigated. Barley (Hordeum distichum L. cvs Triumph and Kristina) grains were matured under defined conditions in a phytotron. Grains of Triumph plants grown under long-day/warm conditions had lower dormancy levels than grains of plants grown under short-day/cool conditions. Aleurone layers isolated from grains of long-day Triumph plants secreted more α-amylase and had a higher responsiveness to GA₃ as measured by α-amylase secretion. Storage of the grains increased both the percentage of germination and the responsiveness of the aleurone to GA₃. Use of different sterilization methods to break dormancy confirmed the correlation between germination percentage and aleurone layer GA₃ responsiveness. The response of embryoless Triumph grains to GA₃ was lower than that of the isolated aleurone layers, suggesting a role of the starchy endosperm in regulating the GA₃ response of the aleurone layer. Grains of the cultivar Kristina harvested from short day- and long day-grown plants lacked dormancy, and their isolated aleurone layers had a similar responsiveness to GA₃ as measured by α-amylase secretion. The data indicate that the physiological state of the aleurone layers contributes to the percentage germination of the grains.     

Polyamine metabolism and its relation to response of the aleurone layers of barley seeds to gibberellic Acid

Polyamine metabolism and its relation to the induction of α-amylase formation in the aleurone layers of barley seeds (Hordeum vulgare cv Himalaya) in response to gibberellic acid (GA₃) has been investigated. A high-performance liquid chromatographic system has been employed for qualitative and quantitative analyses of putrescine (Put), cadaverine (Cad), spermidine (Spd), spermine (Spm), and agmatine (Agm).

Active polyamine metabolism occurs in the aleurone cells of deembryonate barley half seeds during imbibition. The aleurone layers isolated from fully imbibed half seeds contain about 880 nanomoles of Put, 920 nanomoles of Spd, and 610 nanomoles of Spm as free form per gram tissue dry weight while the levels of Cad and Agm are relatively low. The polyamine levels do not change significantly in the aleurone layers in response to added GA₃ (1.5 micromolar) during the 8-hour lag period of the growth substance-induced formation of α-amylase. Also, the polyamine levels are not altered by the presence of abscisic acid (3 micromolar) which inhibits the enzyme induction by GA₃. Kinetic studies show that both applied [U-¹⁴C]ornithine and [U-¹⁴C]arginine are primarily incorporated into Put during 2 hours of incubation, but the incorporation is not significantly affected by added GA₃. Additionally, added GA₃ does not affect the uptake and turnover of [1,4-¹⁴C]Put, nor does it affect the conversion of Put → Spd or Spd → Spm. Treatment of the aleurone layers with GA₃ for 2 hours results in no significant changes in the total activities or the specific activities of ornithine decarboxylase and arginine decarboxylase.

Experiments with polyamine synthesis inhibitors demonstrate that the level of Spd in the aleurone layers could be substantially reduced by the presence of methylglyoxal-bis(guanylhydrazone) (MGBG) during imbibition. MGBG treatment does not affect in vivo incorporation of [8-¹⁴C] adenosine into ATP. The lower the level of Spd the less α-amylase formation is induced by added GA₃. The reduction of GA₃-induced α-amylase formation by MGBG treatment can be either completely or partially overcome by added Spd, depending upon the concentration of MGBG used in the imbibition medium. The results indicate that the early action of GA₃, with respect to induction of α-amylase formation in barley aleurone layers, appears to be not on polyamine metabolism. However, polyamines, particularly Spd, may be involved in regulation of the growth substance-dependent enzyme induction.

     

Regulation of the synthesis of barley aleurone alpha-amylase by gibberellic Acid and calcium ions

The effects of gibberellic acid (GA₃) and calcium ions on the production of α-amylase and acid phosphatase by isolated aleurone layers of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Himalaya) were studied. Aleurone layers not previously exposed to GA₃ or Ca²⁺ show qualitative and quantitative changes in hydrolase production following incubation in either GA₃ or Ca²⁺ or both. Incubation in H₂O or Ca²⁺ results in the production of low levels of α-amylase or acid phosphatase. The addition of GA₃ to the incubation medium causes a 10- to 20-fold increase in the amounts of these enzymes released from the tissue, and addition of Ca²⁺ at 10 millimolar causes a further 8- to 9-fold increase in α-amylase release and a 75% increase in phosphatase release. Production of α-amylase isoenzymes is also modified by the levels of GA₃ and Ca²⁺ in the incubation medium. α-Amylase 2 is produced under all conditions of incubation, while α-amylase 1 appears only when layers are incubated in GA₃ or GA₃ plus Ca²⁺. The synthesis of α-amylases 3 and 4 requires the presence of both GA₃ and Ca²⁺ in the incubation medium. Laurell rocket immuno-electrophoresis shows that two distinct groups of α-amylase antigens are present in incubation media of aleurone layers incubated with both GA₃ and Ca²⁺, while only one group of antigens is found in media of layers incubated in GA₃ alone. Strontium ions can be substituted for Ca²⁺ in increasing hydrolase production, although higher concentrations of Sr²⁺ are required for maximal response. We conclude that GA₃ is required for the production of α-amylase 1 and that both GA₃ and either Ca²⁺ or Sr²⁺ are required for the production of isoenzymes 3 and 4 of barley aleurone α-amylase.     

No Effect of 5-Fluorouracil on the Properties of Purified alpha-Amylase from Barley Half-seeds

α-Amylase has been purified from de-embryonated seeds of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. Betzes) which have been incubated on 10⁻⁶ m gibberellic acid (GA₃) following 3 days of imbibition in buffer. Incubation of the half-seeds in up to 10⁻² m 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) during the entire incubation period, including imbibition, had no effect on any of the following characteristics of purified α-amylase: thermal stability in the absence of calcium, molecular weight of the enzyme, isozyme composition, specific activity, or the amount of α-amylase synthesized by the aleurone tissue. The synthesis of rRNA and tRNA was strongly inhibited by 5-FU, indicating that the analog had entered the aleurone cells. These results are not in agreement with those of Carlson (Nature New Biology 237: 39-41 [1972]) who found that treatment of barley aleurone with 10⁻⁴ m 5-FU prior to the addition of GA₃ resulted in decreased thermal stability of GA₃-induced α-amylase and who interpreted this as evidence that the mRNA for α-amylase was synthesized during the imbibition of the aleurone tissue and independently of gibberellin action. Results of the present experiments indicate that the thermal stability of highly purified α-amylase is not altered by treatment of barley half-seeds with 5-FU, and that 5-FU cannot be used as a probe to examine the timing of α-amylase mRNA synthesis.     

Control of lactate dehydrogenase, lactate glycolysis, and alpha-amylase by o(2) deficit in barley aleurone layers

After 4 days in an atmosphere of N₂, aleurone layers of barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Himalaya) remained viable as judged by their ability to produce near normal amounts of α-amylases when incubated with gibberellic acid (GA₃) in air. However, layers did not produce α-amylase when GA₃ was supplied under N₂, apparently because α-amylase mRNA failed to accumulate.     

Effect of Ethylene on the Release of alpha-Amylase through Cell Walls of Barley Aleurone Layers

A large portion of the gibberellic acid (GA₃)-induced α-amylase in isolated aleurone layers is transported into the incubation medium. In the presence of GA₃ and ethylene, an even larger portion of the enzyme is found in the medium. Employing an acid washing technique developed by Varner and Mense (Plant Physiol 1972 49:187-189), it was observed that ethylene significantly reduces the amount of α-amylase trapped by the thick cell walls of aleurone layers. However, the amount of enzyme remaining in the cell (within the boundary of plasma membrane) is not affected by ethylene. Ethylene has no observable effect on membrane formation as measured by the incorporation of [³²P]orthophosphate into phospholipids. Because of these observations it is suggested that ethylene enhances the release of α-amylase, i.e. transport of α-amylase across cell walls, but not the secretion of α-amylase, i.e. transport of α-amylase past the barrier of plasma membrane. The possible mechanism of this ethylene effect is discussed.     

The Effect of Ultracentrifugation on Fine Structure and α-Amylase Production in Barley Aleurone Cells

Ultracentrifugation of barley aleurone cells results in the stratification of organelles thus allowing for a quantitation of those organelles. Gibberellic acid (GA₃)-stimulated α-amylase production in stratified cells is reduced by centrifugation at gravitational forces greater than 40,000g. Forces below 30,000g do not affect GA₃-stimulated α-amylase production although stratification of organelles occurs at these forces. The ability of centrifuged cells to respond maximally to GA₃ by producing α-amylase is related to the degree of redistribution of organelles within these cells. Thus, recovery of cells from centrifugation at forces below 30,000g is rapid, while recovery from forces above 40,000g is slow.     

Embryoless Wheat Grain: A Natural System for the Study of Gibberellin-induced Enzyme Formation

Yorkstar wheat, grown in New York State, has a high percentage (10-11) of grains without embryos. The embryoless grains have viable aleurone layers and show no sign of injury. These grains are able to support α-amylase synthesis only in the presence of gibberellin A₃ (GA₃). In the absence of GA₃ some protein synthesis occurs in embryoless grains during the early hours of soaking, indicating that such activity occurs prior to and independent of GA₃ induction of α-amylase. The level of β-amylase on a dry weight basis is the same in embryoless and normal grains and decreases with time of soaking. In the presence of GA₃, β-amylase decreases at a slower rate. Isoenzymes of α-amylase from GA₃-treated embryoless and normal grains show quantitative as well as qualitative differences. Cycloheximide (60 μg/ml) completely inhibits the synthesis of α-amylase by embryoless grains. Of the RNA synthesis inhibitors, actinomycin D (60 μg/ml) was ineffective while 6-methylpurine (60 μg/ml) gave 65% inhibition without decreasing the number of isoenzymes.     

Characterization of the alpha-Amylases Synthesized by Aleurone Layers of Himalaya Barley in Response to Gibberellic Acid

The gibberellic acid (GA₃)-induced α-amylases from the aleurone layers of Himalaya barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Himalaya) have been purified by cycloheptaamylose-Sepharose affinity chromatography and fractionated by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. Four fractions (α-amylases 1-4) were obtained which fell into two groups (A and B) on the basis of a number of characteristics. Major differences in serological characteristics and in proteolytic fingerprints were found between group A (α-amylases 1 and 2) and group B (α-amylases 3 and 4). Also, the lag time for appearance of group B enzyme activity was longer than for group A, and the appearance of group B required higher GA₃ levels than group A. The components of each group behaved similarly, although differences in proteolytic fingerprints were detected.

These results together with those from other studies indicate that GA₃ differentially controls the expression of two α-amylase genes or groups of genes giving rise to two groups of α-amylases with many different properties.

     

Low Temperature-Induced GA(3) Sensitivity of Wheat : I. Characterization of the Low Temperature Effect on Isolated Aleurone OF KITE

Gibberellic acid (GA₃) sensitivity (measured as α-amylase production) of the isolated aleurone tissue/deembryonated seed of two wheat (Triticum aestivum L. var Kite and var Aroona) varieties each containing either one of the dwarfing genes, Rht1 and Rht2, was increased significantly as a result of low temperature treatment. The magnitude of the low temperature-induced increase occurred without any change in the lag time of α-amylase production. This low temperature induction of GA₃ sensitivity was found to be operative in aleurone tissue of only those varieties having at least one of the three Rht alleles. It is likely, therefore, that the low temperature treatment effect which `cures' or circumvents the genetic lesions manifest in the Rht1 and Rht2 genotypes is the same as that effective in the Rht3-containing genotype and probably involves an increase in hormone (GA₃) receptor sites. Furthermore, this increase appears to be a quantitative temporal one.     

Water stress enhances expression of an alpha-amylase gene in barley leaves

The amylases of the second leaves of barley seedlings (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Betzes) were resolved into eight isozymes by isoelectric focusing, seven of which were β-amylase and the other, α-amylase. The α-amylase had the same isoelectric point as one of the gibberellin-induced α-amylase isozymes in the aleurone layer. This and other enzyme characteristics indicated that the leaf isozyme corresponded to the type A aleurone α-amylase (low pI group). Crossing experiments indicated that leaf and type A aleurone isozymes resulted from expression of the same genes.

In unwatered seedlings, leaf α-amylase increased as leaf water potential decreased and ABA increased. Water stress had no effect on β-amylase. α-Amylase occurred uniformly along the length of the leaf but β-amylase was concentrated in the basal half of the leaf. Cell fractionation studies indicated that none of the leaf α-amylase occurred inside chloroplasts.

Leaf radiolabeling experiments followed by extraction of α-amylase by affinity chromatography and immunoprecipitation showed that increase of α-amylase activity involved synthesis of the enzyme. However, water stress caused no major change in total protein synthesis. Hybridization of a radiolabeled α-amylase-related cDNA clone to size fractionated RNA showed that water-stressed leaves contained much more α-amylase mRNA than unstressed plants. The results of these and other studies indicate that regulation of gene expression may be a component in water-stress induced metabolic changes.

     

Effects of gibberellic acid and abscisic acid on α-amylase activity and ultrastructure of aleurone cells ofAvena sativa L.

The effects of GA₃ and/or ABA on the α-amylase activity and the ultrastructure of aleurone cells in halves of seeds without embryos (embryo-less half seeds) of oats (Avena sativa L.) were studied. α-Amylase activity was detected by the starch-agar gel method in the aleurone layers of embryo-less half seeds soaked in 1 μM GA₃ solution or 100 μM GA₃+10 μM ABA solution but not in those of seeds soaked in distilled water, 10 μM ABA solution, or 1 μM GA₃+10 μM ABA solution. Ultrastructural examinations of aleurone cells with α-amylase activity showed a decrease in the number of sphaerosomes, the appearance of flattened saccules pressed to the surface of aleurone grains, and the development and transformations of the rER from a slender form to the one with wide inner spaces. In the aleurone cells in which the enzyme activity was not detected, components of the rER showed only slender profiles. The number of sphaerosomes did not decrease, and no flattened saccules appeared in the aleurone cells treated with 10 μM ABA or 1 μM GA₃+10 μM ABA.     

Isolation and characterization of aleurone protoplasts from a malting variety of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)

Summary A procedure has been developed to isolate protoplasts from mature aleurone layers of the malting variety Alexis and four other barley genotypes. It combines induction of endogenous cell wall degrading enzymes together with use of Onuzuka cellulase R 10 and driselase and results in better yields for two varieties than can be obtained with the huskless variety Himalaya. The viability of the freshly isolated protoplasts is greater than 90% and in spite of the presence of gibberellic acid during isolation procedures, most of the protoplasts are at an early developmental stage, as judged by ultrastructure. Gibberellic acid-induced changes in protoplast structure resemble those reported for Himalaya protoplasts. The protoplasts secrete both -amylase (EC 3.2.1.1) and (1-3, 1-4)--glucanase (EC 3.2.1.73) into the surrounding medium. Transfection studies using a low pI -amylase promoter to direct chloramphenicol acetyltransferase expression in aleurone protoplasts from Alexis and Himalaya revealed significant differences in their hormone responsiveness. In the absence of hormones, low levels of expression of the reporter enzyme were obtained in Alexis protoplasts, while high levels were characteristic for Himalaya protoplasts. An 8-fold increase in the expression of the reporter gene was induced by supplying the transfected Alexis protoplasts with gibberellin A₃, whereas expression in Himalaya protoplasts remained unchanged. When Himalaya protoplasts were isolated from aleurone layers that had not been incubated with GA₃ during the initial stages of protoplasting (the classical procedure), the hormone response of the promoter was 2.5-fold. It is thus possible to optimize the aleurone protoplast isolation procedure for different barley genotypes and mutants of interest in studies of transgenic gene expression and hormone induced secretion of proteins from this unique secretory plant tissue.Abbreviations ABA abscisic acid - APIM aleurone protoplast isolation medium - CAT chloramphenicol acetyltransferase - EDTA ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid - ER endoplasmic reticulum - GA₃ gibberellin A₃ - IgG immunoglobulin G - MES 2-(N-morpholino)-ethanesulfonic acid - PAGE polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis - PEG polyethylene glycol - pI isoelectric point - PIPES piperazine N,N-bis-(diethanesulfonic acid) - SDS sodium dodecyl sulfate     

Messenger RNAs from the Scutellum and Aleurone of Germinating Barley Encode (1-->3,1-->4)-beta-d-Glucanase, alpha-Amylase and Carboxypeptidase

Polyclonal antibodies raised against barley (1→3,1→4)-β-d-glucanase, α-amylase and carboxypeptidase were used to detect precursor polypeptides of these hydrolytic enzymes among the in vitro translation products of mRNA isolated from the scutellum and aleurone of germinating barley. In the scutellum, mRNA encoding carboxypeptidase appeared to be relatively more abundant than that encoding α-amylase or (1→3,1→4)-β-d-glucanase, while in the aleurone α-amylase and (1→3,1→4)-β-d-glucanase mRNAs predominated. The apparent molecular weights of the precursors for (1→3,1→4)-β-d-glucanase, α-amylase, and carboxypeptidase were 33,000, 44,000, and 35,000, respectively. In each case these are slightly higher (1,500-5,000) than molecular weights of the mature enzymes. Molecular weights of precursors immunoprecipitated from aleurone and scutellum mRNA translation products were identical for each enzyme.