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The Promoters of Forisome Genes MtSEO2 and MtSEO3 Direct Gene Expression to Immature Sieve Elements in Medicago truncatula and Nicotiana tabacum

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Abstract

Forisomes are mechanoproteins that function as valves in the phloem sieve tubes of the Fabaceae. Changes in the Ca2+ level that occur after wounding trigger an instantaneous switch between the condensed and dispersed conformations, allowing forisomes to seal the sieve plate pores of injured sieve elements. Recently, three genes encoding forisome components from Medicago truncatula were identified [Medicago truncatula sieve element occlusion 1 (MtSEO1), MtSEO2 and MtSEO3] and MtSEO1 expression was shown to be restricted to immature sieve elements. Here, we present a detailed molecular analysis of the MtSEO2 and MtSEO3 promoters and show, through reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and reporter-transgenic experiments in M. truncatula roots and tobacco plants, that their expression profiles are comparable to MtSEO1. The impact of these data on the likelihood of MtSEO gene co-regulation by common transcription factors is discussed.

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Abbreviations

CC:

companion cell

GFP:

green fluorescent protein

GUS:

β-glucuronidase

Mt:

Medicago truncatula

SE:

sieve element

SEO:

sieve element occlusion

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Acknowledgements

The technical assistance of Ann-Christin Müller is gratefully acknowledged. This work was partially supported by the BMBF grant 0312014, the Fraunhofer MAVO program and by the VolkswagenStiftung, contract no. I/82 075.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Biochemie und Biotechnologie der Pflanzen der Westfälischen Wilhelms, Universität Münster, Hindenburgplatz 55, Münster, 48143, Germany

    Gundula A. Noll, Boris Rüping, Antonia M. Ernst, Maria Bucsenez & Dirk Prüfer

  2. Department of Biology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK

    Richard M. Twyman

  3. Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology (IME), Forckenbeckstrasse 6, Aachen, 52074, Germany

    Rainer Fischer & Dirk Prüfer

Authors
  1. Gundula A. Noll
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  2. Boris Rüping
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  3. Antonia M. Ernst
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  4. Maria Bucsenez
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  5. Richard M. Twyman
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  6. Rainer Fischer
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  7. Dirk Prüfer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dirk Prüfer.

Additional information

Gundula A. Noll and Boris Rüping contributed equally to this work.

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Noll, G.A., Rüping, B., Ernst, A.M. et al. The Promoters of Forisome Genes MtSEO2 and MtSEO3 Direct Gene Expression to Immature Sieve Elements in Medicago truncatula and Nicotiana tabacum . Plant Mol Biol Rep 27, 526–533 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11105-009-0120-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11105-009-0120-5

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