MawuAP1 promotes flowering and fruit development in the basal angiosperm Magnolia wufengensis (Magnoliaceae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (9) ◽  
pp. 1247-1259
Author(s):  
Cunjie Li ◽  
Liyuan Chen ◽  
Xiaoning Fan ◽  
Wenjuan Qi ◽  
Jiang Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract The APETALA1/SQUAMOSA (AP1/SQUA)-like genes of flowering plants play crucial roles in the development processes of floral meristems, sepals, petals and fruits. Although many of the AP1/SQUA-like genes have been characterized in angiosperms, few have been identified in basal angiosperm taxa. Therefore, the functional evolution of the AP1/SQUA subfamily is still unclear. We characterized an AP1 homolog, MawuAP1, from Magnolia wufengensis that is an ornamental woody plant belonging to the basal angiosperms. Gene sequence and phylogenetic analyses suggested that MawuAP1 was clustered with the FUL-like homologous genes of basal angiosperms and had FUL motif and paleoAP1 motif domain, but it did not have the euAP1 motif domain of core eudicots. Expression pattern analysis showed that MawuAP1 was highly expressed in vegetative and floral organs, particularly in the early stage of flower bud development and pre-anthesis. Protein–protein interaction pattern analysis revealed that MawuAP1 has interaction with an A-class gene (MawuAP1), C-class gene (MawuAG-1) and E-class gene (MawuAGL9) of the MADS-box family genes. Ectopic expression in Arabidopsis thaliana indicated that MawuAP1 could significantly promote flowering and fruit development, but it could not restore the sepal and petal formation of ap1 mutants. These results demonstrated that there are functional differences in the specification of sepal and petal floral organs and development of fruits among the AP1/SQUA-like genes, and functional conservation in the regulation of floral meristem. These findings provide strong evidence for the important functions of MawuAP1 in floral meristem determination, promoting flowering and fruit development, and further highlight the importance of AP1/SQUA subfamily in biological evolution and diversity.

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (12) ◽  
pp. 3153-3164
Author(s):  
Tao Lyu ◽  
Zhengqi Fan ◽  
Wen Yang ◽  
Chao Yan ◽  
Zhikang Hu ◽  
...  

Abstract Fruit patterning involves the cooperation of multiple processes, including metabolic change, cell differentiation, and cell expansion. The FRUITFUL (FUL) and SHATTERPROOF1/2 (SHPs) MADS-box genes are master regulators directing fruit patterning in several eudicots. However, the regulatory mechanisms of the FUL–SHP network in different fruit types remain unclear. Here, we characterized the functions of an ortholog (CjPLE) of SHPs from Camellia japonica. We showed that CjPLE was predominantly expressed in stamen and carpel tissues during the early stage of floral development and that transcripts were abundant in the pericarp tissues during fruit development. The ectopic expression of CjPLE in Arabidopsis caused enhanced development of the carpels, whereas no defects in floral identity were observed. To investigate the downstream targets of CjPLE, overexpression transformants were analysed through a callus transformation system in Camellia azalea. We examined the expression levels of potential downstream target genes and found that two previously identified APETALA1-like genes (CjAPL1/2) were significantly up-regulated. We showed that CjPLE directly bound to the CArG motifs in the promoter region of CjAPL1 (the FUL ortholog). Taken together, our results reveal a possible positive regulation of FUL by SHP in the control of fruit development in Camellia.


Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 669 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhixiong Liu ◽  
Kebin Zhang ◽  
Laiyun Li ◽  
Yue Fei ◽  
Faju Chen

Manglietia patungensis (Magnoliaceae) exhibits radially symmetric flowers with perianth consisting of three separate sepaloid tepals in whorl 1 and six petaloid tepals in the inner two whorls, which shows an obvious difference from flowers of most Magnoliaceae species that contain three uniform petaloid tepals whorls, and make it an excellent model for understanding perianth morphology differentiation during early flower evolution. Here, two AGL6 orthologs, MapaAGL6-1 and MapaAGL6-2, were isolated from M. patungensis. Sequence alignment and phylogenetic analyses grouped both genes into the AGL6 lineage. MapaAGL6-1 is expressed only in the perianth whorls, while MapaAGL6-2 is strongly expressed in the perianth whorls but is lowly expressed in gynoecium. Furthermore, ectopic expression of MapaAGL6-1 results in strong complementation phenotypes in the Arabidopsis ap1-10 flower and production of normal floral organs in four floral whorls only with the petal number reduced in whorl 2, while ectopic expression of MapaAGL6-2 only results in petals partly rescued but failing to terminate carpelloid development in Arabidopsis ap1-10 mutant. In addition, the daughter lines generated from a cross between 35S::MapaAGL6-1 transgenic plants showing strong phenotypes and 35S::MapaAGL6-2 transgenic plants showing phenotypic changes produce normal flowers. Our results suggest that MapaAGL6-1 is a reasonable A-function gene controlling perianth identity in Magnoliaceae, which infers from its expression region and complementation phenotypes in Arabidopsis ap1 mutant, while MapaAGL6-2 is mainly involved in petaloid tepal development. Our data also provide a new clue to uncover the perianth development and early evolution in basal angiosperms.


Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 559
Author(s):  
Hao Li ◽  
Fang-Fang Liu ◽  
Li-Qing Fu ◽  
Ze Liu ◽  
Wen-Ting Zhang ◽  
...  

Insect C-type lectins (CTLs) play vital roles in modulating humoral and cellular immune responses. The oriental armyworm, Mythimna separata (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a migratory pest that causes significant economic loss in agriculture. CTLs have not yet been systematically identified in M. separata. In this study, we first constructed a transcriptome of M. separata larvae, generating a total of 45,888 unigenes with an average length of 910 bp. Unigenes were functionally annotated in six databases: NR, GO, KEGG, Pfam, eggNOG, and Swiss-Prot. Unigenes were enriched in functional pathways, such as those of signal transduction, endocrine system, cellular community, and immune system. Thirty-five unigenes encoding C-type lectins were identified, including CTL-S1~CTL-S6 (single CRD) and IML-1~IML-29 (dual CRD). Phylogenetic analyses showed dramatic lineage-specific expansions of IMLs. Sequence alignment and structural modeling identified potential ligand-interacting residues. Real-time qPCR revealed that CTL-Ss mainly express in eggs and early stage larvae, while IMLs mainly express in mid-late-stage larvae, pupae, and adults. In naïve larvae, hemocytes, fat body, and epidermis are the major tissues that express CTLs. In larvae challenged by Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, or Beauveria bassiana, the expression of different CTLs was stimulated in hemocytes, fat body and midgut. The present study will help further explore functions of M. separata CTLs.


1969 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siti Raswati Soetiarto ◽  
Ernest Ball

The vegetative apex was a low dome consisting of two layers of tunica surmounting a very small corpus. Foliar primordia originated as periclines in the flanks of T2. The transition apex became first a steep cone and then a hemisphere. All floral primordia—the two bracts, the two sepals, the several whorls of petals, the several whorls of stamens, and the carpels—originated in the manner of leaves, as periclines in T2 on the flanks of the apex. All appendages, including carpels, were therefore lateral. In the early transition, the apex had a brief stage in which there were three tunica layers, but the inner one was lost with the onset of the sepals. The bracts and the first sepal continued the normal positions of primordia for the vegetative phyllotaxy of 3/8, but with the second sepal, this phyllotaxy was lost, and petals, stamens, and carpels were produced in whorls. While leaves, bracts, sepals, and petals were produced in acropetal sequence, stamens were produced in basipetal sequence, and carpels appeared simultaneously. After carpels were formed, the rest of the floral apex underwent a brief period of expansion growth, achieving a diameter comparable to that of a shoot apex, but its substance was eventually incorporated into the carpel margins, which later produced the ovules. This agrees with the determinate nature of the floral apex. During the development of the first series of floral organs, the floral apex underwent continued increase in area, finally achieving a diameter several times that of the vegetative shoot apex. Its size and form were such that they were compared to those of some inflorescence apices. After development of the first series of floral organs, the subjacent tissues to the floral meristem underwent divisions and elongation at right angles to the axis, causing at first a flattening of the meristem, and eventually a cup-shaped form, with the carpels attached in the bottom of a bowl. The mature flower was thus perigynous, but this development arose quite differently from the perigyny as it is known from ontogenetic studies in the Rosaceae.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yushan Liu ◽  
Yizhou Wang ◽  
Jiabo Pei ◽  
Yadong Li ◽  
Haiyue Sun

Abstract Background Caffeic acid O-methyltransferases (COMTs) play an important role in the diversification of natural products, especially in the phenylalanine metabolic pathway of plant. The content of COMT genes in blueberry and relationship between their expression patterns and the lignin content during fruit development have not clearly investigated by now. Results Ninety-two VcCOMTs were identified in Vaccinium corymbosum. According to phylogenetic analyses, the 92 VcCOMTs were divided into 2 groups. The gene structure and conserved motifs within groups were similar which supported the reliability of the phylogenetic structure groupings. Dispersed duplication (DSD) and whole-genome duplication (WGD) were determined to be the major forces in VcCOMTs evolution. The results showed that the results of qRT-PCR and lignin content for 22 VcCOMTs, VcCOMT40 and VcCOMT92 were related to lignin content at different stages of fruit development of blueberry. Conclusion We identified COMT gene family in blueberry, and performed comparative analyses of the phylogenetic relationships in the 15 species of land plant, and gene duplication patterns of COMT genes in 5 of the 15 species. We found 2 VcCOMTs were highly expressed and their relative contents were similar to the variation trend of lignin content during the development of blueberry fruit. These results provide a clue for further study on the roles of VcCOMTs in the development of blueberry fruit and could promisingly be foundations for breeding blueberry clutivals with higher fruit firmness and longer shelf life.


Development ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 125 (12) ◽  
pp. 2171-2180 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.M. Kalb ◽  
K.K. Lau ◽  
B. Goszczynski ◽  
T. Fukushige ◽  
D. Moons ◽  
...  

The C. elegans Ce-fkh-1 gene has been cloned on the basis of its sequence similarity to the winged-helix DNA binding domain of the Drosophila fork head and mammalian HNF-3alpha, beta, gamma genes, and mutations in the zygotically active pha-4 gene have been shown to block formation of the pharynx (and rectum) at an early stage in embryogenesis. In the present paper, we show that Ce-fkh-1 and pha-4 are the same gene. We show that PHA-4 protein is present in nuclei of essentially all pharyngeal cells, of all five cell types. PHA-4 protein first appears close to the point at which a cell lineage will produce only pharyngeal cells, independently of cell type. We show that PHA-4 binds directly to a ‘pan-pharyngeal enhancer element’ previously identified in the promoter of the pharyngeal myosin myo-2 gene; in transgenic embryos, ectopic PHA-4 activates ectopic myo-2 expression. We also show that ectopic PHA-4 can activate ectopic expression of the ceh-22 gene, a pharyngeal-specific NK-2-type homeodomain protein previously shown to bind a muscle-specific enhancer near the PHA-4 binding site in the myo-2 promoter. We propose that it is the combination of pha-4 and regulatory molecules such as ceh-22 that produces the specific gene expression patterns during pharynx development. Overall, pha-4 can be described as an ‘organ identity factor’, completely necessary for organ formation, present in all cells of the organ from the earliest stages, capable of integrating upstream developmental pathways (in this case, the two distinct pathways that produce the anterior and posterior pharynx) and participating directly in the transcriptional regulation of organ specific genes. Finally, we note that the distribution of PHA-4 protein in C. elegans embryos is remarkably similar to the distribution of the fork head protein in Drosophila embryos: high levels in the foregut/pharynx and hindgut/rectum; low levels in the gut proper. Moreover, we show that pha-4 expression in the C. elegans gut is regulated by elt-2, a C. elegans gut-specific GATA-factor and possible homolog of the Drosophila gene serpent, which influences fork head expression in the fly gut. Overall, our results provide evidence for a highly conserved pathway regulating formation of the digestive tract in all (triploblastic) metazoa.


1981 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 287-296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tsutomu TAMURA ◽  
Hirokazu FUKUI ◽  
Shigeru IMAKAWA ◽  
Yoshio MINO

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Ma ◽  
Minhua Xu ◽  
Hancong Liu ◽  
Tiantian Yu ◽  
Ping Guo ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: As we all know, bacterial and fungal infections have become one of the threats to human health. Microbial secondary metabolites are one of the main sources of bioactive natural products. It is estimated that around 60% of all foregone antibiotics are derived from secondary metabolites produced by filamentous actinomycete bacteria. Gordonia spp. are members of the actinomycete family, their contribution to the environment improvement and environmental protection by their biological degradation ability, but there are few studies on their antimicrobial activity of their secondary metabolites. Our team isolated a Gordonia strain WA 4-31 with anti-Candida albicans activity from the intestinal tract of Periplaneta americana in the early stage.Results: In this study, we firstly identified the strain WA 4-31 by the morphological characteristics and the phylogenetic analyses, and found that it homologous to a strain of Gordonia from the Indian desert (EU333873) by 100%. Then four compounds, Actinomycin D (1), Actinomycin X2 (2), Mojavensin A (3) and cyclic (leucine-leucne) dipeptide (4) were purified from the EtOH extract of the fermented broth of the strain. The compounds 1-4 had activities against Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus fumigatus and Trichophyton rubrum. They also had activities against MRSA, S.aureus, K.peneumoniae and E.coli in different degree. The minimum inhibitory concentration of Actinomycin D and Actinomycin X2 on MASA was 0.25 μg/mL. Interestingly, we found that when Mojavensin A was mixed with compound 4 ratio of 1:1, the solution of the compounds was better than the single on anti-Candida albicans. Besides, compounds 1-3 had varying degrees of cytotoxicity on CNE-2 cells and HepG-2 cells.Conclusions: The present study firstly reported the antimicrobial compounds isolated from Gordonia. These indicated that rare actinomycetes from the intestinal tract of Periplaneta americana possessed a potential as a source of active secondary metabolites.


HortScience ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 620-623
Author(s):  
Thomas G. Ranney ◽  
Connor F. Ryan ◽  
Lauren E. Deans ◽  
Nathan P. Lynch

Illicium is an ancient genus and member of the earliest diverging angiosperms known as the Amborellales, Nymphaeales, and Austrobaileyales (ANA) grade. These adaptable, broadleaf evergreen shrubs, including ≈40 species distributed throughout Asia and North America, are valued for diverse culinary, medicinal, and ornamental applications. The study of cytogenetics of Illicium can clarify various discrepancies and further elucidate chromosome numbers, ploidy, and chromosome and genome size evolution in this basal angiosperm lineage and provide basic information to guide plant breeding and improvement programs. The objectives of this study were to use flow cytometry and traditional cytology to determine chromosome numbers, ploidy levels, and relative genome sizes of cultivated Illicium. Of the 29 taxa sampled, including ≈11 species and one hybrid, 2C DNA contents ranged from 24.5 pg for Illicium lanceolatum to 27.9 pg for Illicium aff. majus. The genome sizes of Illicium species are considerably higher than other ANA grade lineages indicating that Illicium went through considerable genome expansion compared with sister lineages. The New World sect. Cymbostemon had a slightly lower mean 2C genome size of 25.1 pg compared with the Old World sect. Illicium at 25.9 pg, providing further support for recognizing these taxonomic sections. All taxa appeared to be diploid and 2n = 2x = 28, except for Illicium floridanum and Illicium mexicanum which were found to be 2n = 2x = 26, most likely resulting from dysploid reduction after divergence into North America. The base chromosome number of x = 14 for most Illicium species suggests that Illicium are ancient paleotetraploids that underwent a whole genome duplication derived from an ancestral base of x = 7. Information on cytogenetics, coupled with phylogenetic analyses, identifies some limitations, but also considerable potential for the development of plant breeding and improvement programs with this genus.


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