Acropetal disappearance of PsAD1 protein in pea axillary buds after the release of apical dominance

We recently isolated PsAD1 cDNA from pea (Pisum sativum L. cv. Alaska) seedlings, whose mRNA abundantly accumulated in dormant axillary buds and disappeared after decapitation [Madoka and Mori (2000) Plant Cell Physiol. 41: 274]. To further elucidate the function of PsAD1, we investigated the temporal and spatial distribution patterns of PsAD1 protein using Western blot and immunocytochemical analyses. Western blot analyses showed that accumulation patterns of PsAD1 protein in axillary buds after decapitation and in response to IAA and 6-benzyladenine were the same as those of PsAD1 mRNA. Immunocytochemical analyses showed that (1) PsAD1 proteins were localized in the procambia, leaf primordia, apical meristem, and secondary axillary buds in the dormant axillary bud, and this distribution was the same as that of PsAD1 mRNA, (2) PsAD1 proteins acropetally disappeared after decapitation, and (3) the growth of axillary buds occurred in the same manner. These acropetal changes occur in a manner similar to the way in which the procambium differentiates into vascular tissue. These results suggest that PsAD1 plays some role in the inhibition of growth and differentiation, or in the maintenance of the dormant state in axillary buds.