EMBRYONIC FACTOR 19 encodes a pentatricopeptide repeat protein that is essential for the initiation of zygotic embryogenesis in Arabidopsis

Early embryogenesis is the most fundamental developmental process in biology.Screening of ethyl methanesulfonate(EMS)-mutagenized populations of Arabidopsis thaliana led to the identification of a zygote-lethal mutant embryonic factor 19(fac19)in which embryo development was arrested at the elongated zygote to octant stage.The number of endosperm nuclei decreased significantly in fac19 embryos.Genetic analysis showed fac19 was caused by a single recessive mutation with typical mendelian segregation,suggesting equal maternal and paternal contributions of FAC19 towards zygotic embryogenesis.Positional cloning showed that FAC19 encodes a putative mitochondrial protein with 16 conserved pentatricopeptide repeat(PPR)motifs.The fac19 mutation caused a conversion from hydrophilic serine located in a previously unknown domain to hydrophobic leucine.Crosses between FAC19/fac19 and the T-DNA insertion mutants in the same gene failed to complement the fac19 defects,confirming the identity of the gene.This study revealed the critical importance of a PPR protein-mediated mitochondrial function in early embryogenesis.     

An Arabidopsis embryonic lethal mutant with reduced expression of alanyl—t RNA synthetase gene

In present paper,one of the T-DNA insertional embryonic lethal mutant of Arabidopsis is identified and designated as acd mutant.The embryo developmant of this mutant is arrested in globular stage,The cell division pattern is abnormal during early embryogenesis and results in distubed cellular differentiation.Most of mutant embryos are finally degenerated and aborted in globular stage,However,a few of them still can germinate in agar palte and produce seedlings with shoter hypoctyl and distorted shoot meristem.To understand the molecular basis of the phenotype of this mutant,the joint fragment of T-DNA/plant DNA is isolated by plasmid rescue and Dig-labeled as probe for cDNA library screening.According to the sequence analysis and similarity searching,a 936 bp cDNA sequence(EMBL accession #:Y12555)from selectoed positive clone shows a 99.8%(923/925bp) sequence homolgy with Alanyl-tRNA Synthetase(AlaRS) gene of Arabidopsis thaliana.Furthermore,the data of in situ hybridization experiment indicate that the expression of Ala RS gene is weak in early embryogenesis and declines along with globular embryodevelopment in this mutant Accordingly,the reduced expression of Ala RS gene may be closely related to the morphological changes in early embryogenesis of this lethal mutant.     

Gfi1.1 regulates hematopoietic lineage differentiation during zebrafish embryogenesis

Growth factor independence 1 （GFI1） is important for maturation of mammalian lymphocytes and neutrophils and maintenance of adult hematopoietic stem cells （HSCs）. The role of GFI1 in embryonic hematopoiesis is less well characterized. Through an enhancer trap screen and bioinformatics analysis, we identified a zebrafish homolog of Gill （named grill） and analyzed its function during embryonic development. Expression of both an endogenous griLl gene and a GFP reporter gene inserted near its genomic locus was detected in hematopoietic cells of zebrafish embryos. Morpholino （MO） knockdown of gill.1 reduced expression of scl, Imo2, c-myb, mpo, ragl, gatal and hemoglobin alpha embryonic-1 （hbael）, as well as the total amount of embryonic hemoglobin, but increased expression ofpu.1 and l-plastin. Under the same conditions, MO injection did not affect the markers involved in vascular and pronephric development. Conversely, overexpression of gill.1 via mRNA injection enhanced expression ofgatal but inhibited expression ofpu.1. These findings suggest that Gill.1 plays a critical role in regulating the balance of embryonic erythroid and myeloid lineage determination, and is also required for the differentiation of lymphocytes and granulocytes during zebrafish embryogenesis.     

Embryogenesis, a process of pattern formation

Plant embryogenesis is traditionally defined as a develop-mental process from zygote to mature embryo, which has the potential to form a complete plant (Bhojwani, 1974; Hu,2005).In dicotyledonous species, the fertilized egg or zygote usually divides according to a stereotyped pattern and gives rise to an embryo that consists of an embryonic shoot,cotyledons, hypocotyls, and an embryonic root.Thus, the basic body plan of the plant is established during the embryogenesis.Interestingly, the shoot-leaf-stem structure,not including the root, is repeatedly photocopied as a basic unit throughout plant vegetative growth (Wolpert et al.,2002).     

Insights into epigenetic patterns in mammalian early embryos

Mammalian fertilization begins with the fusion of two specialized gametes,followed by major epigenetic remodeling leading to the formation of a totipotent embryo.During the development of the pre-implantation embryo,precise reprogramming progress is a prerequisite for avoiding developmental defects or embryonic lethality,but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive.For the past few years,unprecedented breakthroughs have been made in mapping the regulatory network of dynamic epigenomes during mammalian early embryo development,taking advantage of multiple advances and innovations in low-input genome-wide chromatin analysis technologies.The aim of this review is to highlight the most recent progress in understanding the mechanisms of epigenetic remodeling during early embryogenesis in mammals,including DNA methylation,histone modifications,chromatin accessibility and 3D chromatin organization.     

水稻bicoid反义基因转基因植株胚胎发育的形态变化

Bicoid是调控果蝇胚胎极性及以后分节发生过程的重要基因,这一基因编码的蛋白是一种转录调控因子,对一组早期胚胎发育过程中的多齿基因的表达具有调控作用,并被称为形态发生剂。在以前的工作中,从水稻cDNA文库中分离了一个同果蝇bicoid有相当同源性的克隆-Rb24基因（EMBL登录号：AJ2771380）。为进一步了解它在水稻中功能,将Rb的反义基因片段通过农杆菌的介导转入水稻中。通过Gus活性检测和PCR鉴定所获的抗性植株为转基因植株,转基因植株一个很明显的变化就是大约有50%的种子是败育的。通过石蜡切片观察了转基因水稻幼胚的发育情况,结果表明细胞的组织的分化在胚的发育过程中被阻断了。因此Rb基因同控制水稻胚的发育有关。     

水稻bicoid反义基因转基因植株胚胎发育的形态变化

Bicoid 是调控果蝇胚胎极性及以后分节发生过程的重要基因,这一基因编码的蛋白是一种转录调控因子,对一组早期胚胎发育过程中的多齿基因的表达具有调控作用,并被称为形态发生剂。在以前的工作中,从水稻cDNA文库中分离了一个同果蝇bicoid 有相当同源性的克隆—Rb24 基因（EMBL登录号：AJ2771380） 。为进一步了解它在水稻中功能,将Rb 的反义基因片段通过农杆菌的介导转入水稻中。通过Gus活性检测和PCR鉴定所获的抗性植株为转基因植株,转基因植株一个很明显的变化就是大约有50%的种子是败育的。通过石蜡切片观察了转基因水稻幼胚的发育情况,结果表明细胞和组织的分化在胚的发育过程中被阻断了。因此Rb基因同控制水稻胚的发育有关。     

水稻葡萄糖-6-磷酸脱氢酶cDNA的电子克隆

电子克隆是基因克隆的新策略,以小麦胞质葡萄糖－6－磷酸脱氢酶cDNA(Tagpdl克隆）序列为信息探针,在GenBank水稻nr数据库中找到高度同源的水稻基因组序列,通过人工序列拼接及RT-PCR确认得到了水稻该基因的全长cDNA序列,命名为OsG6PDH,OsG6PDH与小麦Tagpdl克隆的DNA一致率为88％,推导的氨基酸序列与小麦,番茄,烟草的胞质葡萄糖－6－磷酸脱氢酶基因的一致率分别为89％,79％,80％,经RT－PCR表达谱分析,OsG6PDH在水稻幼穗,胚,根,叶中都有表达,在幼穗与根中表达略高,另外,讨论了利用水稻基因组信息的电子克隆方法克隆水稻功能基因的可行性。     

Novel odorant-binding proteins expressed in the taste tissue of the fly

A taste tissue cDNA library of the fleshfly Boettcherisca peregrina was screened with a subtracted cDNA probe enriched with taste-receptor-tissue-specific cDNA. Seven genes were identified with sequence similarity to insect odorant-binding protein (OBP) genes. The predicted amino acid sequences of the genes contain the putative signal peptide sequence at the N-terminal and most of them conserve the six cysteines common to known insect OBPs. These genes show a high degree of sequence divergence with approximately 20% amino acid identity. The most striking feature was that all seven of these genes are expressed mainly in the taste tissues, such as the labellum and tarsus, unlike the known insect OBP genes expressed in olfactory tissue. The predicted amino acid sequences had the highest degree of sequence similarity to the Drosophila melanogaster OBPs named pheromone binding protein-related proteins (PBPRPs). These gene products are here referred to as gustatory PBP-related proteins (GPBPRPs) 1-7. Homologous GPBPRP genes were found also in D. melanogaster by database search and are shown to be expressed in Drosophila taste tissues.     

Heat-shock proteins, Hsp84 and Hsp86, of mice and men: two related genes encode formerly identified tumour-specific transplantation antigens

Mouse cDNA clones have been isolated with the help of Drosophila melanogaster 82-kDa heat-shock protein (Hsp82)-coding sequences as hybridization probe. Sequencing of the overlapping mouse clones reveals a long open reading frame (ORF) that encodes a polypeptide of 83.3 kDa which shows about 80% similarity to the respective Drosophila Hsp82 amino acid sequence. The N-terminal half of this cDNA cross-hybridizes to a different class of mouse cDNA clones indicating a related gene. Northern blot hybridization experiments reveal a 2.6-kb poly(A)+RNA when probed with the hsp84 clone and a 2.85-kb signal with the hsp84-related cDNA. The amino acid sequences deduced from the contiguous ORF of the hsp84 and the hsp84-related cDNA coincide with the N-terminal sequence of formerly identified 84-kDa and 86-kDa tumour-specific transplantation antigens (Ullrich et al., 1986). In addition, the amino acid composition of the putative 84-kDa mouse Hsp described here is very similar to that of the 84-kDa tumour antigen described by Ullrich et al. (1986). Both observations corroborate the assumption that these Hsps are identical to the described 84-kDa and 86-kDa tumour-specific transplantation antigens. Using these mouse hsp gene clones as hybridization probes we also isolated the corresponding pair of human cDNA clones. Comparison of the respective sequences reveals a strong evolutionary constraint on these two genes in mouse and man.     

Molecular cloning and functional expression of cDNA encoding a cysteine proteinase inhibitor,cystatin, from Job's tears (Coix lacryma-jobi L. var. Ma-yuen Stapf)

A lambdaZAP II cDNA library was constructed from mRNA in immature seeds of the grass Job's tears. A cDNA clone for a cysteine proteinase inhibitor, cystatin, was isolated from the library. The cDNA clone spanned 757 base pairs and encoded 135 amino acid residues. The deduced amino acid sequence was similar to that of cystatins from the gramineous plants rice, sorghum, and corn. The central Gln-Val-Val-Ala-Gly sequence thought to be one of the binding sites of cystatins was found. A remarkable characteristic of the peptide sequence of Job's-tears cystatin was the putative signal peptide that has been found in sorghum and corn but not in rice. The cystatin cDNA was expressed in Escherichia coli as a His-tagged recombinant protein. The purified recombinant protein inhibited papain.