Kjeld A. Marcker

Transformation and regeneration of the legume Lotus corniculatus: A system for molecular studies of symbiotic nitrogen fixation

SummaryA procedure for transformation and regeneration of the legume species Lotus corniculatus (Birds-foot trefoil) has been developed. The Agrobacterium rhizogenes 15834 and 8196 strains were used to transform plant cells in wound site infections and transformed roots were propagated in vitro. Transformation was monitored by hybridization with pRi T-DNA sequences and by detection of agropine and mannopine. Transformation frequencies of up to 90% were obtained. Shoots spontaneously formed on hairy root cultures were excised, rooted and inoculated with Rhizobium. Root nodules formed on transformed plants had nitrogenase activities comparable to untransformed nodules. Transcript levels from the nodule-specific leghemoglobin genes and the constitutive ubiquitin genes were similar in transformed and untransformed root nodules. Transformed plants responded to R. loti and Bradyrhizobium sp. (Lotus) strains with phenotypes identical to phenotypes for untransformed plants.

Interaction of a nodule specific, trans-acting factor with distinct DNA elements in the soybean leghaemoglobin Ibc(3) 5' upstream region.

Nuclear extracts from soybean nodules, leaves and roots were used to investigate protein–DNA interactions in the 5′ upstream (promoter) region of the soybean leghaemoglobin lbc3 gene. Two distinct regions were identified which strongly bind a nodule specific factor. A Bal31 deletion analysis delimited the DNA elements responsible for the binding of this factor, which map at nucleotides –223 to –246 (element 1) and –161 to –176 (element 2), relative to the start point of transcription. Competition experiments strongly suggest that both elements bind to the same nodule specific factor, but with different affinities. Elements 1 and 2 share a common motif, although their AT‐rich DNA sequences differ. Element 2 is highly conserved at an analogous position in other soybean lb gene 5′ upstream regions.

HMG I-like proteins from leaf and nodule nuclei interact with different AT motifs in soybean nodulin promoters.

Three different nuclear factors recognizing short AT-rich DNA sequences were identified in different organs of soybean. One factor (NAT2) was found to be present in mature nodules, another factor (NAT1) was detected in roots and nodules, and a third one (LAT1) was only observed in leaves. All three factors recognized several DNA sequences in the promoter region of the soybean nodulin N23 gene. Footprinting, deletion, and point mutation analyses revealed different binding properties for all three factors and further showed that even single base pair substitutions had a dramatic effect on binding affinity. The LAT1 and NAT1 factors were released from chromatin by extraction with a low-salt buffer and were soluble in 2% trichloroacetic acid, implying a relationship to high-mobility group (HMG) proteins. DNA binding studies further indicated a functional relationship of these factors to the human HMG I protein. Purification of the LAT1 factor from leaf nuclei revealed the presence of two polypeptides with molecular masses of 21 kilodaltons and 23 kilodaltons, respectively, binding the same DNA sequence with equal affinity.

Hairy roots — a short cut to transgenic root nodules

To facilitate molecular studies of symbiotic nitrogen fixation a procedure for rapid production of transgenic root nodules was established on the legumeLotus corniculatus (Birdsfoot trefoil). Regeneration of transgenic plants is not required as transgenic nodules are formed onAgrobacterium rhizogenes incited roots inoculated withRhizobium. Easy identification of transformed roots is possible using a set ofA. rhizogenes acceptor strains carrying assayable marker genes such as chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), β-glucuronidase (GUS), or luciferase (LUC) under control of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter. Counterselection ofA. rhizogenes after infection of plants was improved using an auxotrophy marker.

Interdependence and nodule specificity of cis-acting regulatory elements in the soybean leghemoglobin lbc3 and N23 gene promoters

SummaryThe qualitative and quantitative contributions of four separate cis-acting DNA elements controlling the root nodule-specific soybean leghemoglobin lbc3 gene were analyzed in transgenic Lotus corniculatus plants. Expression from internal deletions in the 5′ region between positions −49 and −1956 was monitored from a CAT reporter gene. The strong positive element (SPE; −1090, −947) responsible for high-level expression was demonstrated to be an organ-specific element by deleting proximal nodule-specific control elements. Deletion of the downstream qualitative organ-specific element (OSE; −139, −102) containing the putative nodulin consensus sequences 5′AAAGAT and 5′CTCTT resulted in a low expression level. Efficient SPE enhancement is therefore dependent on the organ-specific element, which by itself does not enhance expression. This quantitative effect of the immediate upstream region carrying the consensus sequences was also found in hybrid promoter studies using the soybean nodulin N23 gene promoter, suggesting the involvement of these motifs in a regulatory mechanism for nodulin genes. Deletion of the lbc3negative element (NE, −102, t-49) linking the SPE and OSE onto the TATA box did not lead to unregulated expression. These results indicate that interaction between positive, negative and neutral qualitative elements controls lbc3 expression. Binding of the nuclear protein NAT2 at the lbc3 weak positive element (WPE; −230, −170) is probably not directly required for this mechanism.

The Agrobacterium rhizogenes pRi TL-DNA segment as a gene vector system for transformation of plants

SummaryA plant gene transfer system was developed from the Agrobacterium rhizogenes pRi15834 TL-DNA region. “Intermediate integration vectors” constructed from ColE1-derived plasmids served as cloning vectors in Escherichia coli and formed cointegrates into the TL-DNA after transfer to A. rhizogenes. An A. rhizogenes strain with pBR322 plasmid sequences replacing part of the TL-DNA was also constructed. Plasmids unable to replicate in Agrobacterium can integrate into this TL-DNA by homologous recombination through pBR322 sequences. No loss of pathogenicity was observed with the strains formed after integration of intermediate vectors or strains carrying pBR322 in the TL-DNA segment. Up to 15 kb of DNA have been transferred to plant cells with these systems. The T-DNA from a binary vector was cotransformed into hairy roots which developed after transfer of the wild-type pRi T-DNA. Tested on Lotus corniculatus the TL-derived vector system transformed 90% of the developed roots and the T-DNA from the binary vector was cotransformed into 60% of the roots. Minimum copy numbers of one to five were found. Both constitutive and organ-specific plant genes were faithfully expressed after transfer to the legume L. corniculatus.

A soybean coproporphyrinogen oxidase gene is highly expressed in root nodules

In plants the enzyme coproporphyrinogen oxidase catalyzes the oxidative decarboxylation of coproporphyrinogen III to protoporphyrinogen IX in the heme and chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway(s).We have isolated a soybean coproporphyrinogen oxidase cDNA from a cDNA library and determined the primary structure of the corresponding gene. The coproporphyrinogen oxidase gene encodes a polypeptide with a predicted molecular mass of 43 kDa. The derived amino acid sequence shows 50% similarity to the corresponding yeast amino acid sequence. The main difference is an extension of 67 amino acids at the N-terminus of the soybean polypeptide which may function as a transit peptide.A full-length coproporphyrinogen oxidase cDNA clone complements a yeast mutant deleted of the coproporphyrinogen oxidase gene, thus demonstrating the function of the soybean protein.The soybean coproporphyrinogen oxidase gene is highly expressed in nodules at the stage where several late nodulins including leghemoglobin appear. The coproporphyrinogen oxidase mRNA is also detectable in leaves but at a lower level than in nodules while no mRNA is detectable in roots.The high level of coproporphyrinogen oxidase mRNA in soybean nodules implies that the plant increases heme production in the nodules to meet the demand for additional heme required for hemoprotein formation.

Transcription of the soybean leghemoglobin genes during nodule development.

During the early stages of soybean nodule development the leghemoglobin (Lb) genes are activated sequentially in the opposite order to which they are arranged in the soybean genome. At a specific stage after the initial activation of all the Lb genes, a large increment occurs in the transcription of the Lbc1, Lbc3 and Lba genes while the transcription of the Lbc2 gene is not amplified to a similar extent. All the Lb genes retain significant activity for a long period during the lifetime of a nodule. Consequently the soybean Lb genes are not regulated by a developmental gene switching mechanism as is the case for vertebrate globin genes. Concomitantly with the increase in Lb gene transcription some of the other nodule specific plant genes are activated. These specific changes in the activities of the Lb and nodulin genes precede the activation of the bacterial nitrogenase gene. Thus the alteration in bacterial metabolism due to nitrogen fixation is not responsible for the observed changes in the transcriptional activities of the Lb and nodule‐specific genes.

Hemoglobin genes in non-legumes: cloning and characterization of a Casuarina glauca hemoglobin gene

Tove Christensen, Elisabeth S. Dennis ~, James W. Peacock t, J o r g Landsmann 2 and Kjeld A. Marcker Laboratory of Gene Expression, University of Aarhus, Gustav Wieds Vej 10, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; 1CSIRO Division of Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia; 2Institute for Biochemistry, Federal Biological Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Messeweg 11/12, D-3300 Braunschweig, Germany

A protein binding AT-rich sequence in the soybean leghemoglobin c3 promoter is a general cis element that requires proximal DNA elements to stimulate transcription.

A nodule nuclear factor, NAT2, interacts with two AT-rich binding sites (NAT2 BS1 and NAT2 BS2) in the soybean leghemoglobin (lb) c3 promoter. In transgenic Lotus corniculatus nodules, an oligonucleotide containing NAT2 BS1 activated an inactive -159 lbc3 promoter when placed immediately upstream of the promoter. The activation was independent of the orientation of NAT2 BS1 but was dependent on its position in the promoter. The abilities of different mutated binding sites to activate expression in vivo were correlated to their respective in vitro affinities for binding NAT2. This suggested that the interaction between NAT2 and NAT2 BS1 is responsible for the observed reactivation. Further activation experiments with the lbc3 and the leaf-specific Nicotiana plumbaginifolia ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase small subunit (rbcS-8B) promoter suggested that another specific cis element(s) is required for the function of NAT2 BS1. Thus, the -102 lbc3 promoter lacking the organ-specific element (-139 to -102) was not reactivated by the presence of the binding site, and the rbcS-8B promoter required sequences between -312 and -257 to be activated by NAT2 BS1. This implies that NAT2 has to work in combination with other trans-acting factor(s) to increase expression. The finding of NAT2-like binding activities in different plant organs and the specific expression of the hybrid NAT2 BS1/-312 rbcS-8B promoter in leaves suggest that NAT2 is a general activator of transcription.