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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Davis, California » Crops Pathology and Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #220467
Title: FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF A RING DOMAIN ANKYRIN REPEAT PROTEIN THAT IS HIGHLY EXPRESSED DURING FLOWER SENESCENCE

Author
item XU, XINJIA - DEPT PLANT SCI, UC DAVIS
item Jiang, Cai-Zhong
item Donnelly, Linda
item REID, MICHAEL - DEPT PLANT SCI, UC DAVIS

Submitted to: Journal of Experimental Botany
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/30/2007
Publication Date: 10/1/2007
Citation: Xu, X., Jiang, C., Donnelly, L.M., Reid, M.S. Functional analysis of a ring domain ankyrin repeat protein that is highly expressed during flower senescence. Journal of Experimental Botany.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: A gene encoding a RING zinc finger ankyrin repeat protein (MjXB3), a putative E3 ubiquitin ligase, is highly expressed in petals of senescing four o'clock (Mirabilis jalapa) flowers, increasing >40 000-fold during the onset of visible senescence. The gene has homologues in many other species, and the Petunia homologue is strongly up-regulated in senescing Petunia corollas. Silencing the expression of this gene in Petunia, using virus-induced gene silencing, resulted in a 2 d extension in flower life. In Mirabilis, a 2 kb promoter region, 5' upstream of the MjXB3 gene, was isolated. The promoter sequence included putative binding sites for many DNA-binding proteins, including the bZIP, Myb, homeodomain-leucine zipper (HD-Zip), MADS-box, and WRKY transcription factors. The construct containing a 1 kb promoter region immediately upstream of the MjXB3 gene drove the strongest expression of the b-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene in a transient expression assay. In Petunia, GUS expression under the control of this heterologous promoter fragment was specific to senescing flowers. The Mirabilis promoter GUS construct was tested in other flower species; while GUS activity in carnation petals was high during senescence, no expression was detected in three monocotyledonous flowers-daylily (Hemerocallis 'Stella d'Oro'), daffodil (Narcissus pseudonarcissus 'King Alfred'), and orchid (Dendrobium 'Emma White').