枯草芽孢杆菌（Bacillus subtilis）cspB基因转化烟草（Nicotiana tabacuum）的研究

细菌冷休克蛋白cspB是原核生物RNA的分子伴侣,含有原始型的冷休克结构域,具有与核酸结合功能,可以防止RNase对mRNA的降解,也能纠正mRNA的折叠错误.为了寻找作物改良的潜在基因资源,从枯草芽孢杆菌XS-01基因组中克隆出cspB基因,并与pBI121构建成pBI121-cspB植物表达载体.利用叶圆盘转化法转化烟草,通过卡那霉素筛选和PCR、Southern杂交鉴定5个转化体株系.除TN010外,其他转基因株系在外观形态与野生亲本的没有差别,但TN001和TN011育性降低,TN010和TN012则完全丧失育性.干旱处理结果表明,转基因植株在土壤水分恢复后10d,其平均单株干物质质量较之野生亲本的显著增加;叶片光合速率测定结果表明,在干旱处理时,转基因植株和对照亲本叶片光合速率均显著下降,在土壤水分恢复后,转基因植株的光合速率能快速恢复,但对照亲本的恢复缓慢.实验结果说明,cspB能够促进植物细胞从逆境伤害中快速恢复功能.     

普通烟草LBD基因家族的全基因组序列鉴定与表达分析

LBD是一类具有LOB(lateral organ boundaries)结构域的基因家族,在植物发育过程中起到非常重要的作用。采用生物信息学方法,根据拟南芥LBD基因序列鉴定了普通烟草基因组中的LBD基因,并对家族成员进行了序列特征、系统发育和表达谱分析。结果表明:普通烟草基因组中共有98个LBD基因成员,其基因结构相对简单,一般含有1~3个外显子。LBD基因家族可分成I和II两大类,两类均含有CX_2CX_6CX_3C保守结构域,但II类不含有LX_6LX_3LX_6L形成的"卷曲螺旋"二级结构,根据与拟南芥LBD蛋白构建的系统发育树则可细分成5个亚家族(Ia、Ib、Ic、Id和II)。将LBD基因与表达序列标签(EST)比对,发现36个基因有EST证据;EST、芯片数据和转录组数据分析表明:LBD基因具有不同的组织表达模式,部分基因表现出组织特异性。这些研究结果为普通烟草LBD基因家族功能的深入研究奠定了基础。     

NtGNL1基因通过调控囊泡运输影响烟草根毛的极性生长

极性生长是植物生长发育中的常见现象,但囊泡运输与极性生长的关系还未完全明确。花粉管和根毛是植物细胞极性生长的典型模式。早期研究显示NtGNL1(Nicotiana tabacum GNOM-LIKE 1)通过调节囊泡的后高尔基体转运来影响烟草的花粉管生长。本文以NtGNL1 RNAi转基因植株为材料,研究NtGNL1基因在根毛生长中的作用。结果表明,NtGNL1 RNAi转基因植株的根毛生长明显滞后于野生型,且其根毛出现膨大、弯折、扭曲等形态,与NtGNL1 RNAi转基因植株的花粉管异常形态类似。q RT-PCR检测RNAi转基因株系根毛中PIN1、PIN2、GL2、ROP6、RHD6基因的m RNA表达量,显示PIN2和GL2的表达量显著下调,PIN1、ROP6和RHD6的表达量变化不明显。FM4-64染色表明烟草根表皮细胞和根毛的囊泡分布都受到影响,即NtGNL1基因也影响根毛中的囊泡运输。BFA处理加剧了囊泡的聚集程度,提示根毛尖端还存在其它对BFA敏感并调控囊泡运输的基因。以上证据显示,NtGNL1基因通过囊泡运输途径影响烟草根毛的极性生长,NtGNL1基因的表达下调也影响了PIN2和GL2的表达,从而间接影响根毛的极性生长。     

The production of human glucocerebrosidase in glyco‐engineered Nicotiana benthamiana plants

For the production of therapeutic proteins in plants, the presence of β1,2‐xylose and core α1,3‐fucose on plants’ N‐glycan structures has been debated for their antigenic activity. In this study, RNA interference (RNAi) technology was used to down‐regulate the endogenous N‐acetylglucosaminyltransferase I (GNTI) expression in Nicotiana benthamiana. One glyco‐engineered line (NbGNTI‐RNAi) showed a strong reduction of plant‐specific N‐glycans, with the result that as much as 90.9% of the total N‐glycans were of high‐mannose type. Therefore, this NbGNTI‐RNAi would be a promising system for the production of therapeutic glycoproteins in plants. The NbGNTI‐RNAi plant was cross‐pollinated with transgenic N. benthamiana expressing human glucocerebrosidase (GC). The recombinant GC, which has been used for enzyme replacement therapy in patients with Gaucher's disease, requires terminal mannose for its therapeutic efficacy. The N‐glycan structures that were presented on all of the four occupied N‐glycosylation sites of recombinant GC in NbGNTI‐RNAi plants (GC^gnt1) showed that the majority (ranging from 73.3% up to 85.5%) of the N‐glycans had mannose‐type structures lacking potential immunogenic β1,2‐xylose and α1,3‐fucose epitopes. Moreover, GC^gnt1 could be taken up into the macrophage cells via mannose receptors, and distributed and taken up into the liver and spleen, the target organs in the treatment of Gaucher's disease. Notably, the NbGNTI‐RNAi line, producing GC, was stable and the NbGNTI‐RNAi plants were viable and did not show any obvious phenotype. Therefore, it would provide a robust tool for the production of GC with customized N‐glycan structures.     

Complete Genome Sequence of a Novel Wild tomato mosaic virus Isolate Infecting Nicotiana tabacum in China

Virus particles of approximately 740–760 nm in length and 13 nm in diameter were observed from a diseased Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco) plant in Sichuan Province, China. The complete genomic sequence of the virus isolate XC1 was determined to contain 9659 nucleotides without 3′ terminal poly(A) tail. XC1 has a genome typical of members of the genus Potyvirus, encoding a large polyprotein of 3075 amino acids. Putative proteolytic cleavage sites and a number of well characterized functional motifs were identified by sequence comparisons with those of known potyviruses. Sequence comparison revealed that XC1 shared the highest level of nucleotide sequence identity (76.5%) with Wild tomato mosaic virus (WTMV). Phylogenetic analysis showed that XC1 was closely related to the WTMV Guangdong isolate with an identity of 94.3% between CP gene sequence of the two viruses. We thus named XC1 WTMV‐XC‐1 as a novel isolate of WTMV. The full sequence of WTMV‐XC‐1 may serve as a basis for future investigations on the gene diversity of WTMV.     

地黄GGPPS1基因克隆及表达分析

以地黄为材料,通过分析地黄转录组数据,设计特异性引物,克隆了地黄牻牛儿基牻牛儿基焦磷酸合酶（geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthase,GGPPS）基因的cDNA序列,命名为RgGGPPS1,GenBank登录号为KU258808。同时在生物信息学分析的基础上,进行原核表达、纯化以及组织特异性表达分析。结果显示：（1）RgGGPPS1基因开放阅读框为987 bp,编码328个氨基酸。（2）生物信息学分析结果显示,RgGGPPS1蛋白含有2个富含天冬氨酸的基序(DDXXXXDD和DDXXD),与芝麻等双子叶植物中的GGPPS蛋白相似性较高。（3）利用构建的原核表达载体pET 32a RgGGPPS1在大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)菌株中成功表达RgGGPPS1重组蛋白,采用Ni²⁺亲和层析得到了纯化的RgGGPPS1重组蛋白。（4）荧光定量PCR结果显示,RgGGPPS1基因在根中表达量最高,叶、茎中表达量较低。研究结果为进一步研究RgGGPPS1基因在地黄环烯醚萜苷生物合成途径中的功能奠定了基础。     

The influence of organic and inorganic chelators on the toxicity of bulk and nanoparticles of zinc oxide during germination and seedling growth of Nicotiana tabacum L.

Nano and bulk-forms of zinc oxide (ZnO) are used extensively in industry and consequently may accumulate in the environment. However, there is little information available on the comparative effects of these forms during the critical early stages of plant life. Furthermore, the role of chelating agents, which affect the bioavailability of metals, in ameliorating plant stress due to exposure to nano and bulk-forms of ZnO is not well characterised. In this study, the effects of different concentrations (0.5, 2.5, 5, 10, 50 and 100 ppm) of nano ZnO (22 nm) and bulk ZnO (natural form, 1000 nm) with and without organic (citrate) and inorganic (EDTA) chelators on germination and seedling growth, and oxidative stress markers of Nicotiana tabacum L. were compared. Chelators (without ZnO) enhanced root growth, whilst ZnO negatively affected seedling growth. ZnO toxicity was often mitigated by adding chelators, especially citrate, although at the highest levels (50 and 100?ppm) of ZnO, toxicity was more pronounced when chelated with EDTA, but was decreased with citrate. Collectively, our findings provide important information regarding the different morpho-physiological and biochemical effects of bulk and nano ZnO and organic and inorganic chelators (citrate and EDTA), which are all prevalent in the environment.     

Chloride as a macronutrient increases water‐use efficiency by anatomically driven reduced stomatal conductance and increased mesophyll diffusion to CO2

Chloride (Cl^?) has been recently described as a beneficial macronutrient, playing specific roles in promoting plant growth and water‐use efficiency (WUE). However, it is still unclear how Cl^? could be beneficial, especially in comparison with nitrate (NO₃^?), an essential source of nitrogen that shares with Cl^? similar physical and osmotic properties, as well as common transport mechanisms. In tobacco plants, macronutrient levels of Cl^? specifically reduce stomatal conductance (g_s) without a concomitant reduction in the net photosynthesis rate (A_N). As stomata‐mediated water loss through transpiration is inherent in the need of C₃ plants to capture CO₂, simultaneous increase in photosynthesis and WUE is of great relevance to achieve a sustainable increase in C₃ crop productivity. Our results showed that Cl^?‐mediated stimulation of larger leaf cells leads to a reduction in stomatal density, which in turn reduces g_s and water consumption. Conversely, Cl^? improves mesophyll diffusion conductance to CO₂ (g_m) and photosynthetic performance due to a higher surface area of chloroplasts exposed to the intercellular airspace of mesophyll cells, possibly as a consequence of the stimulation of chloroplast biogenesis. A key finding of this study is the simultaneous improvement of A_N and WUE due to macronutrient Cl^? nutrition. This work identifies relevant and specific functions in which Cl^? participates as a beneficial macronutrient for higher plants, uncovering a sustainable approach to improve crop yield.     

A barley stripe mosaic virus-based guide RNA delivery system for targeted mutagenesis in wheat and maize

Plant RNA virus-based guide RNA (gRNA) delivery has substantial advantages compared to that of the conventional constitutive promoter-driven expression due to the rapid and robust amplification of gRNAs during virus replication and movement. To date, virus-induced genome editing tools have not been developed for wheat and maize. In this study, we engineered a barley stripe mosaic virus (BSMV)-based gRNA delivery system for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/Cas9-mediated targeted mutagenesis in wheat and maize. BSMV-based delivery of single gRNAs for targeted mutagenesis was first validated in Nicotiana benthamiana. To extend this work, we transformed wheat and maize with the Cas9 nuclease gene and selected the wheat TaGASR7 and maize ZmTMS5 genes as targets to assess the feasibility and efficiency of BSMV-mediated mutagenesis. Positive targeted mutagenesis of the TaGASR7 and ZmTMS5 genes was achieved for wheat and maize with efficiencies of up to 78% and 48%. Our results provide a useful tool for fast and efficient delivery of gRNAs into economically important crops.     

Comparison of several Nicotiana species as hosts for high-scale Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression

Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression may be regarded as a promising method for inexpensive large-scale production of recombinant proteins. We optimized the protocol of transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana and compared six Australian species of Nicotiana as hosts for transient expression. The transient expression of GFP under 35S CaMV promoter was observed in all species tested, although the GFP content in leaves of N. benthamiana, N. exigua, and N. excelsior was significantly higher (3.8, 3.7, and 2.0% TSP, respectively). Usage of viral-based expression system resulted in considerable increase of GFP accumulation in N. excelsior and N. benthamiana (63.5 and 16.2% TSP, respectively). We displayed that N. excelsior has the best characteristics in regard to biomass yield as well as GFP accumulation level for both types of the expression cassettes tested.