Characterization of an ethylene receptor homolog gene from rice

Ethylene plays important roles in plant growth, development and stress responses. Its receptor genes have been studied in dicots such asArabidopsis, tobacco and tomato. However, no research has been reported for the ethylene receptors from monocots currently. In the present study, we cloned an ethylene receptor geneOSPK2 from rice and found that its encoded protein was divergent from the ethylene receptors from dicots. OSPK2 had a long extension in its N-terminal, followed by three transmembrane segments, a GAF domain, a putative kinase domain and a putative receiver domain. Although most of the domains were conserved, the expected phosphorylation site His and the phosphate receiver Asp have been replaced by Gln and Asn, respectively. This fact indicates that OSPK2 may not function as a histidine kinase in a phosphorelay manner, but rather play roles by other mechanism, probably through Ser/Thr kinase activity. The expression of theOSPK2 gene was investigated by RT-PCR method under different conditions. We found that this gene was apparently induced by wounding and PEG treatment, but not significantly affected by salt and ABA treatments. The differential expression of theOSPK2 gene may reflect its roles in mediating different abiotic stress responses, consistent with our previous studies on tobacco ethylene receptors.     

Characterization of an ethylene receptor homolog gene from rice

Ethylene is a gaseous hormone and plays important roles in plant growth and development, including seed germination, root hair development, flowering, pollination, abscission, and fruit ripening[1]. It is also involved in plant responses to biotic stress such as pathogen attack, and abiotic stresses such as wounding, drought and freezing[1]. Mutational and genetic analysis of Arabidopsis has led to the identification of five ethylene receptor genes, i.e. ETR1, ERS1, ETR2, EIN4 and ERS2. …     

稻瘟菌诱导的水稻 WRKY 基因OsWRKY52 的分离和鉴定

WRKY 蛋白参与植物对生物或非生物胁迫反应和一些发育、代谢过程,在植物中组成一个转录因子大家族 . 从水稻 cDNA 文库中分离到一个新的 WRKY 基因——— OsWRKY52 cDNA ,包括一个 1 719 bp 的开放读码框,推测编码一个由 572 个氨基酸组成的蛋白质,与燕麦 (Avena sativa) AsWRKY1 具有 54 ％的氨基酸一致性 . 该基因被非亲和性稻瘟菌快速诱导 . 凝胶阻滞实验结果表明,原核表达的 OsWRKY52 能与水稻 PR1a 启动子上的 W 盒元件特异结合 . 采用酵母单杂交体系的方法证明了 OsWRKY52 具有转录激活活性 , 其丝氨酸岛、苏氨酸岛和 C 端的富酸性氨基酸区是负责转录激活的区域 . 这些结果提示 OsWRKY52 作为一个转录激活子,可能参与植物对稻瘟菌的应答反应 .     

Characterization of a rice sucrose-phosphate synthase-encoding gene

A rice genomic clone (spsl) coding for sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) was isolated and sequenced. Rice spsl contains 13 exons and 12 introns, an unusually long 366-bp leader region with a highly organized primary structure and a promoter region with no obvious homology with eukaryotic promoter consensus sequences. Southern blot analysis showed that SPS is encoded by a single-copy gene in the rice genome. Comparison of the rice, maize, potato and spinach SPS deduced amino acid (aa) sequences showed that these enzymes have a well conserved region comprising their first 700 aa, and a variable C-terminal region. Analysis of rice spsl expression showed that mRNA levels change during leaf development. SPS activity and mRNA were undetectable in roots.     

Characterization of an abiotic stress-inducible dehydrin gene, OsDhn1, in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

A full-length 1.1 kb cDNA, designated Oryza sativa Dehydrin 1 (OsDhn1), was isolated from the seed coat of rice. The deduced protein is hydrophilic and has three K-type and one S-type motifs (SK3-type), indicating that OsDhn1 belongs to the acidic dehydrin family, which includes wheat WCOR410 and Arabidopsis COR47. Expression of OsDhn1 was strongly induced by low temperature as well as by drought. Induction of OsDhn1 by cold stress was clearcut in the roots of seedlings and the epidermis of palea and lemma. OsDhn1 was also up-regulated in UBI::CBF1/DREB1b transgenic plants indicating that it is regulated by the CBF/DREB stress signaling pathway.