Mutations in the eIF(iso)4G translation initiation factor confer high resistance of rice to Rice yellow mottle virus

We report here evidence of the role that the isoform of the eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4G (eIF(iso)4G) plays in naturally occurring resistance in plant/virus interactions. A genetic and physical mapping approach was developed to isolate the Rymv1 locus controlling the high recessive resistance to Rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV) in the rice (Oryza sativa) variety Gigante. The locus was mapped to a 160-kb interval containing a gene from the eIF(iso)4G family. The stable transformation of a resistant line with the cDNA of this gene, derived from a susceptible variety, resulted in the loss of resistance in transgenic plants. The allelic variability of this gene was analysed in three resistant and 17 susceptible varieties from different cultivated rice species or subspecies. Compared with susceptible varieties, resistant varieties present specific alleles, characterized by either amino acid substitutions or short amino-acid deletions in the middle domain of the protein. The structure of this domain was modelled and showed that the substitutions were clustered on a small surface patch. This suggests that this domain may be involved in an interaction with the virus.     

Over-expression of OsAGAP, an ARF-GAP, interferes with auxin influx, vesicle trafficking and root development

Development and organogenesis in both dicot and monocot plants are highly dependent on polar auxin transport (PAT), which requires the proper asymmetric localization of both auxin influx and efflux carriers. In the model dicot plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the trafficking and localization of auxin efflux facilitators such as PIN-FORMED1 (PIN1) are mediated by GNOM, a guanine-nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) for the ADP-ribosylation factor (ARF) family of small GTPases, but molecular regulators of the auxin influx facilitators remain unknown. Here, we show that over-expression of OsAGAP, an ARF-GTPase-activating protein (ARF-GAP) in rice, impaired PAT and interfered with both primary and lateral root development. The lateral root phenotype could be rescued by the membrane-permeable auxin 1-naphthyl acetic acid, but not by indole 3-acetic acid (IAA) or by 2,4-dichloro-phenoxyacetic acid, which require influx facilitators to enter the cells. OsAGAP-over-expressing plants had alterations in vesicle trafficking and localization of the presumptive A. thaliana auxin-influx carrier AUX1, but not in the localization of the auxin efflux facilitators. Together, our data suggest that OsAGAP has a specific role in regulating vesicle trafficking pathways such as the auxin influx pathway, which in turn controls auxin-dependent root growth in plants.     

GAMYB controls different sets of genes and is differentially regulated by microRNA in aleurone cells and anthers

GAMYB is a component of gibberellin (GA) signaling in cereal aleurone cells, and has an important role in flower development. However, it is unclear how GAMYB function is regulated. We examined the involvement of a microRNA, miR159, in the regulation of GAMYB expression in cereal aleurone cells and flower development. In aleurone cells, no miR159 expression was observed with or without GA treatment, suggesting that miR159 is not involved in the regulation of GAMYB and GAMYB-like genes in this tissue. miR159 was expressed in tissues other than aleurone, and miR159 over-expressors showed similar but more severe phenotypes than the gamyb mutant. GAMYB and GAMYB-like genes are co-expressed with miR159 in anthers, and the mRNA levels for GAMYB and GAMYB-like genes are negatively correlated with miR159 levels during anther development. Thus, OsGAMYB and OsGAMYB-like genes are regulated by miR159 in flowers. A microarray analysis revealed that OsGAMYB and its upstream regulator SLR1 are involved in the regulation of almost all GA-mediated gene expression in rice aleurone cells. Moreover, different sets of genes are regulated by GAMYB in aleurone cells and anthers. GAMYB binds directly to promoter regions of its target genes in anthers as well as aleurone cells. Based on these observations, we suggest that the regulation of GAMYB expression and GAMYB function are different in aleurone cells and flowers in rice.     

The rice SPINDLY gene functions as a negative regulator of gibberellin signaling by controlling the suppressive function of the DELLA protein, SLR1, and modulating brassinosteroid synthesis

SPINDLY (SPY) encodes an O-linked N-acetylglucosamine transferase that is considered to be a negative regulator of gibberellin (GA) signaling through an unknown mechanism. To understand the function of SPY in GA signaling in rice, we isolated a rice SPINDLY homolog (OsSPY) and produced knockdown transgenic plants in which OsSPY expression was reduced by introducing its antisense or RNAi construct. In knockdown plants, the enhanced elongation of lower internodes was correlated with decreased levels of OsSPY expression, similar to the spindly phenotype of Arabidopsis spy mutants, suggesting that OsSPY also functions as a negative factor in GA signaling in rice. The suppressive function of OsSPY in GA signaling was supported by the findings that the dwarfism was partially rescued and OsGA20ox2 (GA20 oxidase) expression was reduced in GA-deficient and GA-insensitive mutants by the knockdown of OsSPY function. The suppression of OsSPY function in a GA-insensitive mutant, gid2, also caused an increase in the phosphorylation of a rice DELLA protein, SLR1, but did not change the amount of SLR1. This indicates that the function of OsSPY in GA signaling is not via changes in the amount or stability of SLR1, but probably involves control of the suppressive function of SLR1. In addition to the GA-related phenotypes, OsSPY antisense and RNAi plants showed increased lamina joint bending, which is a brassinosteroid-related phenotype, indicating that OsSPY may play roles both in GA signaling and in the brassinosteroid pathway.     

水稻覆膜旱作对根叶性状、土壤养分和土壤微生物活性的影响

研究了水稻覆膜旱作、裸地旱作、常规水作处理对根系形态、叶片水势、土壤养分、土壤微生物数量和土壤酶活性的影响。结果表明,覆膜旱作能改善水稻田间的生态环境,提高早季土壤温度1～3℃。与裸地旱作相比,覆膜旱作能增加抽穗期水稻根系的总根长、比根长,而这些指标与常规水作差别不大。在水稻抽穗期,无论是剑叶还是倒2叶的水势,均有如下趋势：水作〉覆膜旱作〉裸地旱作,但均未达到显著水平。不同处理对叶片叶绿素含量的影响在分蘖期差异不大,中后期覆膜旱作明显高于裸地旱作和常规水作,抽穗期分别增加29．44％和15．15％,成熟期则为74．4％、38．9％。覆膜旱作能显著增加水稻的有效穗数,早季和晚季产量比裸地旱作增产10．6％和12．5％,而与常规水作差别不大。与裸地旱作和常规水作相比,覆膜旱作土壤养分含量在分蘖期除了全磷、速效氮显著增加外,其他指标差异不大。而抽穗期则由于覆膜后作物对养分的消耗加大从而使土壤养分含量下降,特别是总磷、速效磷、速效钾与常规水作相比显著下降,分别降低25．9％,31．9％,16．2％。而成熟期则大多指标与常规水作相比有所下降,但未达到显著水平。与常规水作栽培相比,覆膜旱作能增加土壤微生物细菌、真菌、放线菌2．5倍,显著增加土壤过氧化氢酶和蔗糖酶的活性,而土壤脲酶活性则差异不大。土壤过氧化氢酶活性在分蘖期、抽穗期、成熟期分别增加13．8％,81．3％,17．4％,蔗糖酶活性则分别增加42．8％,28．8％和69．9％。     

无选择标记和载体骨干序列的Xa21转基因水稻的获得

利用双右边界T-DNA载体通过根癌农杆菌介导法将水稻白叶枯病广谱抗性基因Xa21导入杂交稻重要恢复系C418中。T0代共获得27个独立转基因株系,通过田间抗性鉴定与PCR分析,有17个株系的Xa21基因分子鉴定为阳性,且对白叶枯病原菌P6生理小种具有抗性。通过对17个株系的后代植株进行田间抗性鉴定,分子标记辅助选择及Southern杂交分析,结果显示4个株系的T1代植株中能分离出无潮霉素标记基因的Xa21转基因植株。无选择标记Xa21转基因株系的获得率为15%。PCR检测还表明,这些无选择标记的Xa21转基因植株不带有载体骨架序列。通过对转基因后代进一步的抗性鉴定与PCR辅助选择,获得了无选择标记和载体骨架序列的转基因Xa21纯合的抗白叶枯病水稻。     

一种可用于分析水稻花药中钙调素蛋白分布的胶体金免疫电镜标记技术

以水稻花药作为实验材料,在前人应用胶体金技术标记钙调素蛋白(Ca M)的基础上,采用Epon812常规包埋方法,并在标记过程及染色体系上做了一些改进,建立了一套标记特异性较强且超微结构保存较好的花药中Ca M的标记方法。     

OsCOI1,水稻中一个受茉莉酸甲酯和脱落酸诱导表达的F-box家族基因

利用Blast检索、EST分析和RT-PCR,在水稻中分离到一个与拟南芥COI1同源的新基因,命名为OsCOI1.OsCOI1编码595个氨基酸.推测的OsCOI1编码蛋白有一个F-boxmotif和16个富含亮氨酸的重复序列,这与拟南芥COI1相似.OsCOI1在氨基酸水平上和COI1有很高的同源性(74%).经半定量RT-PCR法和RNA印迹分析,表明水稻中OsCOI1表达水平在经茉莉酸甲酯和脱落酸处理后呈明显变化,但不受水杨酸和乙烯的影响,说明OsCOI1可能在茉莉酸信号途径和脱落酸途径中具有特定功能.     

Upland rice and lowland rice exhibited different P/P expression under water deficit and ABA treatment

Aquaporins play a significant role in plant water relations.To further understand the aquaporin function in plants underwater stress,the expression of a subgroup of aquaporins,plasma membrane intrinsic proteins(PIPs),was studied at boththe protein and mRNA level in upland rice(Oryza sativa L.cv.Zhonghan 3)and lowland rice(Oryza sativa L.cv.Xiushui63)when they were water stressed by treatment with 20% polyethylene glycol(PEG).Plants responded differently to20% PEG treatment.Leaf water content of upland rice leaves was reduced rapidly.PIP protein level increased markedlyin roots of both types,but only in leaves of upland rice after 10h of PEG treatment.At the mRNA level,OsPIP1;2,Os-PIP1;3,OsPIP2;1 and OsPIP2;5 in roots as well as OsPIP1;2 and OsPIP1;3 in leaves were significantly up-regulatedin upland rice,whereas the corresponding genes remained unchanged or down-regulated in lowland rice.Meanwhile,weobserved a significant increase in the endogenous abscisic acid(ABA)level in upland rice but not in lowland rice underwater deficit.Treatment with 60μM ABA enhanced the expression of OsPIP1;2,OsPIP2;5 and OsPIP2;6 in roots andOsPIP1;2,OsPIP2;4 and OsPIP2;6 in leaves of upland rice.The responsiveness of PIP genes to water stress and ABAwere different,implying that the regulation of PIP genes involves both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent signalingpathways during water deficit.     

植物源调节剂对水稻的影响

植物源调节剂是利用艾蒿为主要原料,首次用提取的混合物研制成的一种植物生长调节剂,使用80mg/L的植物源调节剂混合物水溶液,分别在水稻苗期、拔节期、孕穗期叶面喷洒,清水对照。结果表明:植物源调节剂使水稻增产11.38%,千粒重增加11.45%。株干重增加了17.1%。在灌浆期连续测定表明:相对于CK,穗粒重增加10.9%,叶绿素含量提高14.41%。品质分析结果为:可溶性糖含量提高15.57%、游离氨基酸含量提高18.52%、淀粉含量提高1.59%,可溶性蛋白质降低22.17%、粗纤维降低1.95%、粗脂肪降低1.22%。该植物源调节剂对水稻的生长和产量都有显著的促进效应。