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Down-regulation of an anionic peroxidase in transgenic aspen and its effect on lignin characteristics

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Abstract

It is generally accepted that peroxidases catalyze the final step in the biosynthesis of lignin. In this study, to examine how expression of prxA3a, a gene for an anionic peroxidase, might be related to lignification in plant tissues, we produced transgenic tobacco plants that harbored a gene for β-glucuronidase (GUS) fused to the prxA3a promoter. Histochemical staining for GUS activity indicated that the prxA3a promoter was active mainly in the lignifying cells of stem tissues. Further, to examine the effects of suppressing the expression of prxA3a, we transferred an antisense prxA3a gene construct into the original host, hybrid aspen (Populus sieboldii ×P. gradidentata), under the control of the original promoter of the prxA3a gene. Eleven transformed aspens were obtained and characterized, and the stable integration of the antisense construct was confirmed by PCR and Southern blotting analysis in all these lines. Assays of enzymatic activity showed that both total peroxidase activity and acidic peroxidase activity were lower in most transgenic lines than in the control plants. In addition, the reduction of peroxidase activity was associated with lower lignin content and modified lignin composition. Transgenic lines with the highest reduction of peroxidase activity displayed a higher syringyl/vanillin (S/V) ratio and a lower S+V yield, mainly because of a decreased amount of V units. Thus, our results indicate that prxA3a is involved in the lignification of xylem tissue and that the down-regulation of anionic peroxidase alters both lignin content and composition in hybrid aspen.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the help provided by Drs. Keiko Yamada and Hiroyasu Ebinuma in the production of transgenic hybrid aspen plants. This research was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Research for the Future (JSPS-RFTF 96L00605) from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Symbiotic Production Systems, Graduate School of Bio-Applications and Systems Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8588, Japan

    Yahong Li, Shinya Kajita, Yoshihiro Katayama & Noriyuki Morohoshi

  2. Department of Applied Biological Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Fuchu, Japan

    Shinya Kawai

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  1. Yahong Li
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  2. Shinya Kajita
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  3. Shinya Kawai
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  4. Yoshihiro Katayama
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  5. Noriyuki Morohoshi
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Correspondence to Noriyuki Morohoshi.

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Li, Y., Kajita, S., Kawai, S. et al. Down-regulation of an anionic peroxidase in transgenic aspen and its effect on lignin characteristics. J Plant Res 116, 175–182 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10265-003-0087-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10265-003-0087-5

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