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Multiple tandem duplication of the phenylalanine ammonia-lyase genes in Cucumis sativus L.

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Abstract

Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) is the first entry enzyme of the phenylpropanoid pathway, and therefore plays a key role in both plant development and stress defense. In many plants, PAL is encoded by a multi-gene family, and each member is differentially regulated in response to environmental stimuli. In the present study, we report that PAL in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is encoded for by a family of seven genes (designated as CsPAL1-7). All seven CsPALs are arranged in tandem in two duplication blocks, which are located on chromosomes 4 and 6, respectively. The cDNA and protein sequences of the CsPALs share an overall high identity to each other. Homology modeling reveals similarities in their protein structures, besides several slight differences, implying the different activities in conversion of phenylalanine. Phylogenic analysis places CsPAL1-7 in a separate cluster rather than clustering with other plant PALs. Analyses of expression profiles in different cucumber tissues or in response to various stress or plant hormone treatments indicate that CsPAL1-7 play redundant, but divergent roles in cucumber development and stress response. This is consistent with our finding that CsPALs possess overlapping but different cis-elements in their promoter regions. Finally, several duplication events are discussed to explain the evolution of the cucumber PAL genes.

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Abbreviations

ABA:

Abscisic acid

ABRE:

ABA responsive element

CRT:

C-rich repeat

ERE:

Ethylene responsive element

EST:

Expression sequence tag

GA:

Gibberellin

GARE:

GA responsive element

HSE:

Heat shock responsive element

LTRE:

Low temperature responsive element

MIO:

4-methylidene-imidazolone-5-one

ORF:

Open reading frame

PAL:

Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase

RT-PCR:

Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction

SA:

Salicylic acid

SARE:

SA responsive element

UTR:

Untranslated region

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Acknowledgments

We thank the members of our laboratory for their helpful advice and discussions. This work is supported by the Young Scientists Fund of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 31101548) and International Science and Technology Cooperation Program of China (2010DFB30550). This work is also supported by the earmarked fund for China Agriculture Research System (CARS-25-C-13), and Key Laboratory of Horticultural Crop Biology and Germplasm Innovation, Ministry of Agriculture.

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  1. Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No.12 Zhongguancun South Street, Beijing, 100081, People’s Republic of China

    Qing-Mao Shang, Liang Li & Chun-Juan Dong

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  1. Qing-Mao Shang
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  2. Liang Li
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  3. Chun-Juan Dong
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Correspondence to Chun-Juan Dong.

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Q.-M. Shang and L. Li contributed equally to this work.

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Shang, QM., Li, L. & Dong, CJ. Multiple tandem duplication of the phenylalanine ammonia-lyase genes in Cucumis sativus L.. Planta 236, 1093–1105 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-012-1659-1

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