Updating Carbamoylphosphate Synthase (CPS) Phylogenies: Occurrence and Phylogenetic Identity of Archaeal CPS Genes

Among Bacteria the carA and carB genes encoding the small (CarA) and large (CarB) subunits of carbamoylphosphate synthase (CPS) have been lost in certain symbionts (Haemophylus influenzae) and in most obligate intracellular parasites (Chlamydiae, Spirochaetes, Mycoplasmatales, Rickettsiae) having genome sizes in the 0.7- to 1.1-Mb range. Compared to Bacteria, Archaea exhibit a more varied pattern of CPS gene losses and an unusual propensity to incorporate CPS genes derived from both Bacteria and other Archaea. Schematically they fall into three groups. Group 1 taxa (the crenarchaeon Aeropyrum pernix and the euryarchaea Pyrococcus horikoshi and Pyrococcus abyssii) lack CPS genes altogether. Group 2 taxa (comprising Halobacteriales, Thermoplasmales, Methanococcales, Methanomicrobiales, Archaeoglobales) harbor CPS genes whose encoded CarB and CarA subunit proteins are ostensibly bacterial in origin; that is, they are intermixed with bacterial homologues on a phylogeny of concatenated CarA and CarB sequences and are not distinguishable from bacterial sequences after searching for domain-specific amino acid residue positions. Group 3 taxa (the crenarchaea Pyrobaculum aerophilum, Sulfolobus solfataricus, and Sulfolobus tokodaii and the euryarchaeon Pyrococcus furiosus) harbor CPS genes whose encoded proteins appear to be archaeal: consistent with an archaeal origin, the CarA and CarB sequences in this group possess both unique signatures and signatures affiliating them to Eukarya. Based on the topology of the clade comprising the four Group 3 taxa, we argue that CPS genes of P. furiosus (a euryarchaeon) and those of the crenarchaea P. aerophilum, S. solfataricus, and S. tokodaii are of a single type, resulting from the two genes being laterally transferred from a crenarchaeon to P. furiosus.     

PCR primers targeting <Emphasis Type="Italic">cis</Emphasis>-acting promoter elements in plants

The cis-acting elements present in gene promoters are important for promoter function. Thermal Asymmetric Interlaced PCR (TAIL-PCR) provides a simple means for isolating promoter sequences, but the necessary primers can be troublesome to design. Here, we describe an approach, which targets cis-acting elements for TAIL-PCR. The method combines the advantages of TAIL-PCR and SiteFinding-PCR. The new method proved successful for isolating a number of plant promoter sequences.     

Mesoderm-specific B104 expression in the Drosophila embryo is mediated by internal cis-acting elements of the transposon

The Drosophila melanogaster genome contains about 100 copies of the B104 transposable element, which is strongly expressed during embryogenesis. Here we show that B104 expression is restricted to the esophageal and amnioproctodeal regions of the embryo and to the developing mesoderm. Mesoderm-specific B104 expression requires the activity of the mesoderm-determining factors twist and snail. Virtually the same expression patterns were observed in Drosophila yakuba, a species that a separated from D. melanogaster by some 15 million years of evolution. We show that B104 expression is directed by internal sequences of the retrotransposon that are capable of acting as a cis-acting regulatory element in front of a heterologous Drosophila promoter. Our findings suggest that retrotransposon insertions can affect the expression patterns of endogenous genes by adding and distributing specific cis-acting control elements throughout the host genome. We therefore propose that transposable elements in addition to reducing the fitness of their hosts may also provide a rich pool of cis-acting sequences that contribute to the long-term evolutionary potential of the population in a beneficial manner.     

碎米荠超氧化物歧化酶基因家族成员的鉴定和分析

为了解碎米荠(Cardamine hirsuta)的SOD基因特征,对SOD家族成员的基因结构、染色体定位、系统进化关系进行了分析,对顺式作用元件和蛋白结构进行了预测,并利用qRT-PCR技术检测各家族成员的组织表达模式。结果表明,碎米荠基因组中共有10个SOD基因(ChSODs),包括6个Cu/Zn-SOD、3个Fe-SOD和1个Mn-SOD。编码的ChSODs蛋白有57~ 324个氨基酸,分子量为6 419.41~34 659.01 kDa,理论等电点为4.92~9.60;系统进化树分析表明,碎米荠的ChSOD与拟南芥的AtSOD的同源性较高;ChSODs在根、茎、叶中均有表达,且在叶中高表达,其中CARHR085500和CARHR256690在叶和茎中表达量较高;顺式作用元件预测表明,碎米荠SOD响应多种非生物胁迫,其中对ABA和低温胁迫较为敏感; ChSODs蛋白质的二级和三级结构具有差异性。这表明碎米荠SOD基因在抗氧化过程中发挥重要作用。     

资阳香橙砧木CjSPL基因家族鉴定及表达模式分析

鳞片启动子结合类蛋白(squamosa promoter binding protein-like,SPL)家族是一类参与调控植物生长发育以及响应环境胁迫的重要转录因子,但在柑橘等多年生果树中的研究较少。本研究以柑橘一种重要的砧木——资阳香橙(Citrus junos Sieb.ex Tanaka)为材料,基于plantTFDB转录因子数据库和甜橙基因组数据库鉴定并克隆出资阳香橙15个SPL家族基因,命名为CjSPL1–CjSPL15。序列分析表明,CjSPLs的开放阅读框(open reading frame,ORF)长度为393–2865 bp,编码130–954个氨基酸;系统进化树将15个CjSPLs分为9个亚家族;基因结构和保守结构域分析预测出20个不同的保守motif和SBP基本结构域;启动子顺式作用元件分析预测出20种启动子元件,其中包含植物生长发育、非生物胁迫及次生代谢物相关元件。通过实时荧光定量PCR(real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR,qRT-PCR)分析了CjSPLs在干旱、盐和低温胁迫下的表达模式,较多CjSPLs在胁迫处理后显著上调表达。本研究为后续深入研究柑橘及其他果树SPL家族转录因子功能提供参考。     

Evidence that the plastid signal and light operate via the samecis-acting elements in the promoters of nuclear genes for plastid proteins

Nuclear-encoded genes for proteins of the photosynthetic maschinery represent a particular subset of genes. Their expression is cooperatively stimulated by discrete factors including the developmental stage of plastids and light. We have analyzed in transgenic tobacco the plastid- and light-dependent expression of a series of 5 promoter deletions of various nuclear genes from spinach, of fusions of defined promoter segments with the 90-bp 35S RNA CaMV minimal promoter, as well as with mutations in sequences with homologies to characterizedcis-elements, to address the question of whether the plastid signal and light operate via the same or differentcis-acting elements. In none of the 160 different transgenic lines (representing 32 promoter constructs from seven genes) analyzed, could significant differences be identified in the responses to the two regulatory pathways. The data are compatible with the idea that both signals control the expression of nuclear genes for plastid proteins via the samecis-acting elements.     

Combinatorial Interactions of Two <Emphasis Type="Italic">cis-</Emphasis>Acting Elements,AT-Rich Regions and HSEs,in the Expression of Tomato <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lehsp23.8</Emphasis> upon Heat and Non-Heat Stresses

We previously cloned and analyzed the 1,893-bp promoter region (−1,915 to −23) of the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) Lehsp23.8 gene, whose expression is induced by treatment with high or low temperatures, heavy metal, or abscisic acid (ABA). In our present work, we examined how this expression is regulated. A comprehensive quantitative promoter deletion and base-substitution analysis was conducted under various environmental conditions. The proximal region (−565 to −23 bp) of the Lehsp23.8 promoter harbors cis-regulatory elements that conferred high levels of heat-induced expression in transgenic tobacco. Mutation of the five proximal HSEs (HSE1 to 5) of that promoter led to an absence of heat inducibility. The AT-rich regions between −255 bp and −565 bp (AT-rich1 to 4) in the promoter might serve as enhancers for such heat-induced expression. Deletion and HSE mutation analysis indicated that other cis-acting elements also function in response to low temperature, heavy metal, and ABA and that HSE1 to 5 act at least as cis-acting elements in multiple-stress responses of Lehsp23.8. These results reveal that those five proximal HSEs and AT-rich regions function interdependently in the expression of Lehsp23.8 in response to non-heat stresses. Furthermore, the putative elements CRT/DRE, AP-1, and ABRE in that promoter are not required for multiple-stress induction.     

Construction and functional analysis of pathogen-inducible synthetic promoters in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica napus</Emphasis>

In this study, we selected two known pathogen-inducible cis-acting elements, F and E17, to construct synthetic pathogen-inducible promoters for analysis in transformed canola (Brassica napus L.). The synthetic promoter approach was used, which involved the insertion of dimers and combining two cis-acting elements (E17 and F) upstream of the minimal CaMV 35S promoter. Canola plants were transformed by three constructs, pGEE, pGFF, pGFFEE containing synthetic promoters (SP), SP-EE, SP-FF and SP-FFEE, respectively. Analyses of histochemical and fluorometric GUS expression indicated that synthetic promoters responded to fungal elicitors and phytohormone treatments. The SP-FF promoter showed high responses against methyl jasmonate and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, while SP-EE demonstrated inducibility only in response to salicylic acid and Rhizoctonia solani. The SP-EE promoter similar to SP-FFEE, did not respond to S. sclerotiorum and methyl jasmonate. However, SP-FFEE was highly induced by R. solani elicitors and showed that the level of GUS expression was greater than that by either of E17 or F elements alone. These three synthetic promoters did not activate the expression of the reporter gene in response to cold, heat, UV and wounding.     

水稻胁迫相关基因OsPM1启动子的克隆与分析

依据NCBI数据库OsPM1的序列信息,采用PCR技术扩增获取OsPM1的2 100bp的启动子序列。利用PLACE预测启动子的顺式作用元件分析表明,启动子内含有大量与胁迫相关的顺式作用元件,主要有ABA响应相关元件、脱水响应元件、低温响应元件、热激响应元件和转录因子结合元件。构建OsPM1的启动子和GUS基因融合表达载体,转入拟南芥。组织化学染色分析结果显示,非生物胁迫处理前,幼苗中GUS基因表达水平很低;干旱、低温、高盐等胁迫处理后,GUS基因表达量显著升高。研究表明,OsPM1的启动子能够显著提高在干旱、高盐和低温处理后下游基因的表达水平。     

Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Profiling Suggest that Invertase Genes Function in Silique Development and the Response to <i>Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</i> in <i>Brassica napus</i>

Invertase (INV), a key enzyme in sucrose metabolism, irreversibly catalyzes the hydrolysis of sucrose to glucose and fructose, thus playing important roles in plant growth, development, and biotic and abiotic stress responses. In this study, we identified 27 members of the BnaINV family in Brassica napus. We constructed a phylogenetic tree of the family and predicted the gene structures, conserved motifs, cis-acting elements in promoters, physicochemical properties of encoded proteins, and chromosomal distribution of the BnaINVs. We also analyzed the expression of the BnaINVs in different tissues and developmental stages in the B. napus cultivar Zhongshuang 11 using qRT-PCR. In addition, we analyzed RNA-sequencing data to explore the expression patterns of the BnaINVs in four cultivars with different harvest indices and in plants inoculated with the pathogenic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. We used WGCNA (weighted coexpression network analysis) to uncover BnaINVregulatory networks. Finally, we explored the expression patterns of several BnaINV genes in cultivars with long (Zhongshuang 4) and short (Ningyou 12) siliques. Our results suggest that BnaINVs play important roles in the growth and development of rapeseed siliques and the defense response against pathogens. Our findings could facilitate the breeding of high-yielding B. napus cultivars with strong disease resistance.