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The evolution of pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase in plants: a key enzyme in proline synthesis

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Abstract

Many plants synthesize and accumulate proline in response to osmotic stress conditions. A central enzyme in the proline biosynthesis is the bifunctional enzyme Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS) that includes two functional catalytic domains: the γ-glutamyl kinase and the glutamic-γ-semialdehyde dehydrogenase. This enzyme catalyzes the first two steps of the proline biosynthetic pathway and plays a central role in the regulation of this process in plants. To determine the evolutionary events that occurred in P5CS genes, partial sequences from four Neotropical trees were cloned and compared to those of other plant taxa. Molecular phylogenetic analysis indicated that P5CS duplication events have occurred several times following the emergence of flowering plants and at different frequencies throughout the evolution of monocots and dicots. Despite the high number of conserved residues in plant P5CS sequences, positive selection was observed at different regions of P5CS paralogous genes and also when dicots and monocots were contrasted.

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Acknowledgments

Authors would like to thank Dr. S. Cavers for the critical reading of the manuscript and suggestions. This work was partially supported by a CNPq Grant (474993/2006-0) and the SEEDSOURCE project, funded by the European Commission under the Sixth Framework Programme (Contract number 003708) and coordinated by S. Cavers at the NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK. Samples were provided by C. Navarro, P. Rymer, R. Griebel and S. Cavers. M. Margis-Pinheiro and R. Margis were supported by grants from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, CNPq, Brazil (308708/2006-7 and 302684/2005-0). A. Zolet received a Ph.D. fellowship from CNPq.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética e Biologia Molecular, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Andreia Carina Turchetto-Zolet, Marcia Margis-Pinheiro & Rogerio Margis

  2. sala 213, prédio 43431, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Cx. Postal 15005, Porto Alegre, 91501-970, Brazil

    Andreia Carina Turchetto-Zolet & Rogerio Margis

  3. Departamento de Bioquimica, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Rogerio Margis

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  1. Andreia Carina Turchetto-Zolet
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  2. Marcia Margis-Pinheiro
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  3. Rogerio Margis
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Correspondence to Rogerio Margis.

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Communicated by K. Shirasu.

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Turchetto-Zolet, A.C., Margis-Pinheiro, M. & Margis, R. The evolution of pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase in plants: a key enzyme in proline synthesis. Mol Genet Genomics 281, 87–97 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00438-008-0396-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00438-008-0396-4

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