scholarly journals Early event in maize leaf epidermis formation as revealed by cell lineage studies

Development ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 120 (8) ◽  
pp. 2113-2120 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Cerioli ◽  
A. Marocco ◽  
M. Maddaloni ◽  
M. Motto ◽  
F. Salamini

The epidermal cells of the juvenile leaves of maize are covered by a wax layer. glossy mutants are known which reduce drastically wax deposition. We have used the somatically unstable glossy-1 mutable 8 allele to study the distribution on the epidermis of spontaneous revertant sectors of wild- type tissues. Sectors tend to start and end at positions that correlate with the location on the epidermis of the long costal cells of ribs. It is concluded that in the protoderm only a few cells have a role and position in the generation of each of the developmental modules located between leaf midrib and margin. The module consists of an epidermal strip of cells bordered by two lateral ribs. The module originates from at least 4 cells, with one cel l being the progenitor of the other three. Data are provided describing the mode of longitudinal anticlinal epidermal cell divisions within the module that are responsible for the increase in leaf width. The results suggest the existence of a clonal type of development during early leaf epidermis formation.

Genetics ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 163 (4) ◽  
pp. 1337-1356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adelaide T C Carpenter

Abstract The meiotic phenotypes of two mutant alleles of the mei-W68 gene, 1 and L1, were studied by genetics and by serial-section electron microscopy. Despite no or reduced exchange, both mutant alleles have normal synaptonemal complex. However, neither has any early recombination nodules; instead, both exhibit high numbers of very long (up to 2 μm) structures here named “noodles.” These are hypothesized to be formed by the unchecked extension of identical but much shorter structures ephemerally seen in wild type, which may be precursors of early recombination nodules. Although the mei-W68L1 allele is identical to the mei-W681 allele in both the absence of early recombination nodules and a high frequency of noodles (i.e., it is amorphic for the noodle phene), it is hypomorphic in its effects on exchange and late recombination nodules. The differential effects of this allele on early and late recombination nodules are consistent with the hypothesis that Drosophila females have two separate recombination pathways—one for simple gene conversion, the other for exchange.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. eabe2299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Na Wang ◽  
Jonathan I. Gent ◽  
R. Kelly Dawe

The production of haploids is an important first step in creating many new plant varieties. One approach used in Arabidopsis involves crossing plants expressing different forms of centromeric histone H3 (CENP-A/CENH3) and subsequent loss of genome with weaker centromeres. However, the method has been ineffective in crop plants. Here, we describe a greatly simplified method based on crossing maize lines that are heterozygous for a cenh3 null mutation. Crossing +/cenh3 to wild-type plants in both directions yielded haploid progeny. Genome elimination was determined by the cenh3 genotype of the gametophyte, suggesting that centromere failure is caused by CENH3 dilution during the postmeiotic cell divisions that precede gamete formation. The cenh3 haploid inducer works as a vigorous hybrid and can be transferred to other lines in a single cross, making it versatile for a variety of applications.


Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 160 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-73
Author(s):  
Michael J McEachern ◽  
Dana Hager Underwood ◽  
Elizabeth H Blackburn

Abstract Telomerase adds telomeric DNA repeats to telomeric termini using a sequence within its RNA subunit as a template. We characterized two mutations in the Kluyveromyces lactis telomerase RNA gene (TER1) template. Each initially produced normally regulated telomeres. One mutation, ter1-AA, had a cryptic defect in length regulation that was apparent only if the mutant gene was transformed into a TER1 deletion strain to permit extensive replacement of basal wild-type repeats with mutant repeats. This mutant differs from previously studied delayed elongation mutants in a number of properties. The second mutation, TER1-Bcl, which generates a BclI restriction site in newly synthesized telomeric repeats, was indistinguishable from wild type in all phenotypes assayed: cell growth, telomere length, and in vivo telomerase fidelity. TER1-Bcl cells demonstrated that the outer halves of the telomeric repeat tracts turn over within a few hundred cell divisions, while the innermost few repeats typically resisted turnover for at least 3000 cell divisions. Similarly deep but incomplete turnover was also observed in two other TER1 template mutants with highly elongated telomeres. These results indicate that most DNA turnover in functionally normal telomeres is due to gradual replicative sequence loss and additions by telomerase but that there are other processes that also contribute to turnover.


Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 161 (3) ◽  
pp. 1247-1255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eiji Nambara ◽  
Masaharu Suzuki ◽  
Suzanne Abrams ◽  
Donald R McCarty ◽  
Yuji Kamiya ◽  
...  

Abstract The plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) controls many aspects of plant growth and development under a diverse range of environmental conditions. To identify genes functioning in ABA signaling, we have carried out a screen for mutants that takes advantage of the ability of wild-type Arabidopsis seeds to respond to (−)-(R)-ABA, an enantiomer of the natural (+)-(S)-ABA. The premise of the screen was to identify mutations that preferentially alter their germination response in the presence of one stereoisomer vs. the other. Twenty-six mutants were identified and genetic analysis on 23 lines defines two new loci, designated CHOTTO1 and CHOTTO2, and a collection of new mutant alleles of the ABA-insensitive genes, ABI3, ABI4, and ABI5. The abi5 alleles are less sensitive to (+)-ABA than to (−)-ABA. In contrast, the abi3 alleles exhibit a variety of differences in response to the ABA isomers. Genetic and molecular analysis of these alleles suggests that the ABI3 transcription factor may perceive multiple ABA signals.


1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (8) ◽  
pp. 4249-4259 ◽  
Author(s):  
A M Yahanda ◽  
J M Bruner ◽  
L A Donehower ◽  
R S Morrison

Loss or mutation of p53 is thought to be an early event in the malignant transformation of many human astrocytic tumors. To better understand the role of p53 in their growth and transformation, we developed a model employing cultured neonatal astrocytes derived from mice deficient in one (p53 +/-) or both (p53 -/-) p53 alleles, comparing them with wild-type (p53 +/+) cells. Studies of in vitro and in vivo growth and transformation were performed, and flow cytometry and karyotyping were used to correlate changes in growth with genomic instability. Early-passage (EP) p53 -/- astrocytes achieved higher saturation densities and had more rapid growth than EP p53 +/- and +/+ cells. The EP p53 -/- cells were not transformed, as they were unable to grow in serum-free medium or in nude mice. With continued passaging, p53 -/- cells exhibited a multistep progression to a transformed phenotype. Late-passage p53 -/- cells achieved saturation densities 50 times higher than those of p53 +/+ cells and formed large, well-vascularized tumors in nude mice. p53 +/- astrocytes exhibited early loss of the remaining wild-type p53 allele and then evolved in a manner phenotypically similar to p53 -/- astrocytes. In marked contrast, astrocytes retaining both wild-type p53 alleles never exhibited a transformed phenotype and usually senesced after 7 to 10 passages. Dramatic alterations in ploidy and karyotype occurred and were restricted to cells deficient in wild-type p53 following repeated passaging. The results of these studies suggest that loss of wild-type p53 function promotes genomic instability, accelerated growth, and malignant transformation in astrocytes.


2002 ◽  
Vol 184 (4) ◽  
pp. 1172-1179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas M. A. Gronewold ◽  
Dale Kaiser

ABSTRACT Cell-bound C-signal guides the building of a fruiting body and triggers the differentiation of myxospores. Earlier work has shown that transcription of the csgA gene, which encodes the C-signal, is directed by four genes of the act operon. To see how expression of the genes encoding components of the aggregation and sporulation processes depends on C-signaling, mutants with loss-of-function mutations in each of the act genes were investigated. These mutations were found to have no effect on genes that are normally expressed up to 3 h into development and are C-signal independent. Neither the time of first expression nor the rate of expression increase was changed in actA, actB, actC, or actD mutant strains. Also, there was no effect on A-signal production, which normally starts before 3 h. By contrast, the null act mutants have striking defects in C-signal production. These mutations changed the expression of four gene reporters that are related to aggregation and sporulation and are expressed at 6 h or later in development. The actA and actB null mutations substantially decreased the expression of all these reporters. The other act null mutations caused either premature expression to wild-type levels (actC) or delayed expression (actD), which ultimately rose to wild-type levels. The pattern of effects on these reporters shows how the C-signal differentially regulates the steps that together build a fruiting body and differentiate spores within it.


2006 ◽  
Vol 203 (2) ◽  
pp. 325-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetsuya Honda ◽  
Eri Segi-Nishida ◽  
Yoshiki Miyachi ◽  
Shuh Narumiya

Prostaglandin (PG)I2 (prostacyclin [PGI]) and PGE2 are abundantly present in the synovial fluid of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Although the role of PGE2 in RA has been well studied, how much PGI2 contributes to RA is little known. To examine this issue, we backcrossed mice lacking the PGI receptor (IP) to the DBA/1J strain and subjected them to collagen-induced arthritis (CIA). IP-deficient (IP−/−) mice exhibited significant reduction in arthritic scores compared with wild-type (WT) mice, despite anti-collagen antibody production and complement activation similar to WT mice. IP−/− mice also showed significant reduction in contents of proinflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin (IL)-6 in arthritic paws. Consistently, the addition of an IP agonist to cultured synovial fibroblasts significantly enhanced IL-6 production and induced expression of other arthritis-related genes. On the other hand, loss or inhibition of each PGE receptor subtype alone did not affect elicitation of inflammation in CIA. However, a partial but significant suppression of CIA was achieved by the combined inhibition of EP2 and EP4. Our results show significant roles of both PGI2-IP and PGE2-EP2/EP4 signaling in the development of CIA, and suggest that inhibition of PGE2 synthesis alone may not be sufficient for suppression of RA symptoms.


Genetics ◽  
1980 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 435-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Robert Horvitz ◽  
John E Sulston

ABSTRACT Twenty-four mutants that alter the normally invariant post-embryonic cell lineages of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have been isolated and genetically characterized. In some of these mutants, cell divisions fail that occur in wild-type animals; in other mutants, cells divide that do not normally do so. The mutants differ in the specificities of their defects, so that it is possible to identify mutations that affect some cell lineages but not others. These mutants define 14 complementation groups, which have been mapped. The abnormal phenotype of most of the cell-lineage mutants results from a single recessive mutation; however, the excessive cell divisions characteristic of one strain, CB1322, require the presence of two unlinked recessive mutations. All 24 cell-lineage mutants display incomplete penetrance and/or variable expressivity. Three of the mutants are suppressed by pleiotropic suppressors believed to be specific for null alleles, suggesting that their phenotypes result from the complete absence of gene activity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 99 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 18-19
Author(s):  
Felipe Hickmann ◽  
José Braccini Neto ◽  
Luke M Kramer ◽  
Kent A Gray ◽  
Yijian Huang ◽  
...  

Abstract Studies on differences in resilience to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus (PRRSV) between breeds are scarce in the literature. Thus, the objective of this work was to assess PRRSV resilience in PRRSV wild-type infected sows from two breeds. Farrowing data included 2546 and 2522 litters from 894 Duroc and 813 Landrace sows, respectively, which were housed together and experienced the same PRRSV outbreak. Traits used for this study were number of piglets born alive (NBA), number born dead (NBD), total number born (TNB), and number weaned (NW). The impact of PRRSV infection was evaluated by comparing the reproductive performance of breeds between PRRS phases (pre-PRRS, PRRS, and post-PRRS). PRRS phases were defined based on the reproductive performance data. NBA, NBD, and NW were analyzed as a proportion of TNB using a Poisson mixed model. Pre-defined contrasts were used to evaluate the effect of breed on PRRSV resilience and on return to PRRSV-free performance, representing the differences between breeds for the difference between pre-PRRS and PRRS phases, and pre-PRRS and post-PRRS phases, respectively. There was a significant (P ≤ 0.003) interaction between PRRS phase and breed for all traits, as shown in Table 1. In general, reproductive performance reduced from pre-PRRS to PRRS, and then increased from PRRS to post-PRRS, as expected. The resilience contrast was significant for all traits (P ≤ 0.003). In all cases, the drop in percent reproductive performance from pre-PRRS to PRRS was lower for Duroc than for Landrace, indicating that Duroc sows have greater PRRSV resilience than Landrace sows. The return to PRRSV-free performance contrast had a trending effect for NBD (P = 0.055), and it was not significant for the other traits (P ≥ 0.515). These results indicate that Duroc sows have overall greater phenotypic PRRSV resilience for reproductive performance than Landrace sows.


Development ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 124 (15) ◽  
pp. 2875-2888 ◽  
Author(s):  
L.A. Wrischnik ◽  
C.J. Kenyon

In C. elegans, six lateral epidermal stem cells, the seam cells V1-V6, are located in a row along the anterior-posterior (A/P) body axis. Anterior seam cells (V1-V4) undergo a fairly simple sequence of stem cell divisions and generate only epidermal cells. Posterior seam cells (V5 and V6) undergo a more complicated sequence of cell divisions that include additional rounds of stem cell proliferation and the production of neural as well as epidermal cells. In the wild type, activity of the gene lin-22 allows V1-V4 to generate their normal epidermal lineages rather than V5-like lineages. lin-22 activity is also required to prevent additional neurons from being produced by one branch of the V5 lineage. We find that the lin-22 gene exhibits homology to the Drosophila gene hairy, and that lin-22 activity represses neural development within the V5 lineage by blocking expression of the posterior-specific Hox gene mab-5 in specific cells. In addition, in order to prevent anterior V cells from generating V5-like lineages, wild-type lin-22 gene activity must inhibit (directly or indirectly) at least five downstream regulatory gene activities. In anterior body regions, lin-22(+) inhibits expression of the Hox gene mab-5. It also inhibits the activity of the achaete-scute homolog lin-32 and an unidentified gene that we postulate regulates stem cell division. Each of these three genes is required for the expression of a different piece of the ectopic V5-like lineages generated in lin-22 mutants. In addition, lin-22 activity prevents two other Hox genes, lin-39 and egl-5, from acquiring new activities within their normal domains of function along the A/P body axis. Some, but not all, of the patterning activities of lin-22 in C. elegans resemble those of hairy in Drosophila.


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