Santosh Misra

Transgenic plants expressing cationic peptide chimeras exhibit broad-spectrum resistance to phytopathogens.

Here we describe a strategy for engineering transgenic plants with broad-spectrum resistance to bacterial and fungal phytopathogens. We expressed a synthetic gene encoding a N terminus-modified, cecropin–melittin cationic peptide chimera (MsrA1), with broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. The synthetic gene was introduced into two potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars, Desiree and Russet Burbank, stable incorporation was confirmed by PCR and DNA sequencing, and expression confirmed by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR and recovery of the biologically active peptide. The morphology and yield of transgenic Desiree plants and tubers was unaffected. Highly stringent challenges with bacterial or fungal phytopathogens demonstrated powerful resistance. Tubers retained their resistance to infectious challenge for more than a year, and did not appear to be harmful when fed to mice. Expression of msrA1 in the cultivar Russet Burbank caused a striking lesion-mimic phenotype during leaf and tuber development, indicating its utility may be cultivar specific. Given the ubiquity of antimicrobial cationic peptides as well as their inherent capacity for recombinant and combinatorial variants, this approach may potentially be used to engineer a range of disease-resistant plants.

Heavy metal tolerant transgenic Brassica napus L. and Nicotiana tabacum L. plants

SummaryA chimeric gene containing a cloned human metallothionein-II (MT-II) processed gene was introduced into Brassica napus and Nicotiana tabacum cells on a disarmed Ti-plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Transformants expressed MT protein as a Mendelian trait and in a constitutive manner. Seeds from self-fertilized transgenic plants were germinated on media containing toxic levels of cadmium and scored for tolerance/ susceptibility to this heavy metal. The growth of root and shoot of transformed seedlings was unaffected by up to 100 μM CdCl2, whereas control seedlings showed severe inhibition of root and shoot growth and chlorosis of leaves. The results of these experiments indicate that agriculturally important plants such as B. napus can be genetically engineered for heavy metal tolerance/sequestration and eventually for partitioning of heavy metals in non-consumed plant tissues.

Analysis of stress-induced gene expression in fish cell lines exposed to heavy metals and heat shock

We have examined the effect of heavy metals on the expression of two major groups of stress-induced proteins in fish cell lines: the 70 kDa heat-shock proteins (hsp70) and metallothioneins (MTs). The rainbow trout hepatoma (RTH) cell line synthesized the hsp70 protein in response to zinc and heat shock, while chinook salmon embryonic (CHSE) cells synthesized this protein in response to these inducers, as well as cadmium. The synthesis of this 70 kDa protein was correlated with the accumulation of hsp70 mRNA as measured by hybridization to a trout hsp70 gene probe. Heavy metals also induced the synthesis of MT in RTH cells. However, heat shock did not result in induction of MT and its mRNA. Unlike RTH cells, CHSE cells did not synthesize MT following exposure to cadmium or zinc. When these cells were treated with 5-azacytidine prior to heavy metal treatment, accumulation of MT mRNA was observed. Northern blot analysis of total RNA from 5-azacytidine treated CHSE cells, using a trout MT (tMT-B) cDNA probe, indicated that the time-course of induction and the maximal level of MT mRNA accumulation in response to cadmium and zinc paralleled that observed in RTH cells. Copper and dexamethasone were ineffective in inducing MT mRNA in 5-azacytidine-treated CHSE cells. These results indicate that MT is specifically induced in response to heavy metal treatment, whereas the synthesis of hsp70 appears to be a general stress response. Furthermore, MT is differentially regulated by heavy metals and dexamethasone in these cell lines and the expression of MT is cell-type-specific.

Transgenic Potatoes Expressing a Novel Cationic Peptide are Resistant to Late Blight and Pink Rot

Potato is the world’s largest non-cereal crop. Potato late blight is a pandemic, foliar wasting potato disease caused by Phytophthora infestans, which has become highly virulent, fungicide resistant, and widely disseminated. Similarly, fungicide resistant isolates of Phytophthora erythroseptica, which causes pink rot, have also become an economic scourge of potato tubers. Thus, an alternate, cost effective strategy for disease control has become an international imperative. Here we describe a strategy for engineering potato plants exhibiting strong protection against these exceptionally virulent pathogens without deleterious effects on plant yield or vigor. The small, naturally occurring antimicrobial cationic peptide, temporin A, was N-terminally modified (MsrA3) and expressed in potato plants. MsrA3 conveyed strong resistance to late blight and pink rot phytopathogens in addition to the bacterial pathogen Erwinia carotovora. Transgenic tubers remained disease-free during storage for more than 2 years. These results provide a timely, sustainable, effective, and environmentally friendly means of control of potato diseases while simultaneously preventing storage losses.

A new family of lipolytic plant enzymes with members in rice, arabidopsis and maize

We have noted a striking similarity between the sequences of proteins in a novel family of lipases we recently reported [Upton, C. and Buckley, J.T. (1995) Trends Biol. Sci. 20, 178–9] and more than 120 sequences from the database of Expressed Sequence Tags (dbEST) which correspond to at least 30 unique genes from arabidopsis, rice and maize. A cDNA (Arab‐1) corresponding to one of these sequences was isolated, sequenced and translated. There was significant similarity to sequences in the new lipase family over the entire open reading frame of Arab‐1 and when expressed in E. coli, the gene product was lipolytic. Arab‐1 and genes for some of the other plant proteins appear to be differentially expressed. They may play a role in the regulation of lipid metabolism during plant development.

The isolation of a novel metallothionein-related cDNA expressed in somatic and zygotic embryos of Douglas-fir: regulation by ABA, osmoticum, and metal ions.

To isolate genes which are expressed preferentially during embryogenesis, a Douglas-fir embryogenesis cDNA library was constructed and differentially screened with cDNA probes made with mRNA from developing and mature embryos, respectively. The cDNA clone PM 2.1 was isolated based on its abundance in developing seeds and absence in mature seeds, and its predicted amino acid sequence was shown to have structural features characteristic of plant MT-like proteins. Alignment of the PM 2.1 predicted amino acid sequence with other plant MT-like protein sequences revealed a general paucity of Cys and Cys-Xaa-Cys sequences and the presence of novel serine residues within the conserved Cys-Xaa-Cys motifs in the C-terminal domain. The consensus sequence following the Cys-poor spacer in type 2 MT-like proteins, CXCXXXCXCXXCXCX, was modified in PM 2.1 to CXSXXXSXYXX-XCX. Phylogenetic analysis supported PM 2.1 was distinct from other MT and grouped with MT-like proteins from Arabidopsis (OEST), rice (AEST) and kiwifruit (AD1), which do not belong to type 1 or 2. The PM 2.1 gene was expressed in somatic and zygotic embryos, in haploid maternal tissue, as well as in hormone- and metal-treated seeds and seedlings. The PM 2.1 transcripts were detected in the needles of 14-week-old seedlings, but not the root tissue or mature pollen. The expression of the PM 2.1 gene in embryos was dependent upon ABA and osmoticum and in seedlings was differentially modulated by metals, suggesting a role of the PM 2.1 gene product in the control of microelement availability during Douglas-fir seed development and germination. The novel structural features, and the developmental, hormonal and metal modulation of PM 2.1 expression, are evidence for a new type of MT-related protein in plants.

Conifer zygotic embryogenesis, somatic embryogenesis, and seed germination: Biochemical and molecular advances

The development of techniques for somatic embryogenesis in conifers has led to rapid advances in the ability to culture conifer tissue in vitro. Somatic embryogenesis now provides a means to clonally propagate commercially valuable conifers of several species and offers an in vitro experimental system for studying embryogenesis. As a result of these developments, the conifer zygotic and somatic embryo system has recently attracted the attention not only of the cell biologist but also of biochemists and molecular biologists. In this review I have attempted to consolidate the recent information on ultrastructure, biochemical and molecular aspects of conifer zygotic and somatic embryogenesis. In the first section, salient features of zygotic embryogenesis are highlighted followed by biochemical and ultrastructural characterization of development with reference to storage reserve deposition. In the second section, detailed characterization of seed storage proteins, changes in gene expression with emphasis on storage protein genes and Lea genes during zygotic and somatic embryogenesis are described. Effect of culture treatments such as abscisic acid, osmoticum and desiccation on storage protein gene expression in somatic embryos is discussed. Based on these studies, comparisons are presented between angiosperm and gymnosperm embryogeny regarding the unique morphological and developmental patterns of conifer embryogenesis. Finally, a brief discussion of recent progress in biochemical and molecular characterization of conifer seed germination is presented.

Developmental gene expression in conifer embryogenesis and germination. I. Seed proteins and protein body composition of mature embryo and the megagametophyte of white spruce (Picea glauca [Moench] Voss.)

The ultrastructure of protein bodies of white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) showed presence of the globoids and the crystalloids embedded in an amorphous matrix. The storage protein composition of isolated protein bodies was examined by SDS-PAGE analysis and compared to that of embryonic and megagametophytic tissue. Our results show that the crystalloids are the major storage proteins of white spruce and are only completely soluble in buffered sodium dodecyl sulfate or 6 M guanidine-HCl. These insoluble proteins constitute up to 70% of the storage reserves in the seed. Crystalloid proteins are found in the megagametophyte as well as in the embryonic axis but to a lesser extent in the latter, and are a major protein reserve in mature seeds from all other Picea sp. examined. These proteins in their non-reduced form have molecular weights of 57 kD and in reduced form migrate as 3 distinct groups of proteins in the molecular weight range of 42 kD, 34.5–35 kD and 22.5–23 kD. The soluble protein gel profile shows that a group of proteins in the 27–30 kD molecular weight region are the major proteins in the buffer soluble fraction and are common to all spruce species examined. None of the proteins of white spruce appear to be glycosylated.

Molecular cloning and characterization of a legumin-like storage protein cDNA of Douglas fir seeds

A cDNA library was made from poly(A)+ RNA isolated from developing Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) embryo and megagametophytic tissue, and the cDNA clones were identified by immunoscreening with polyclonal antiserum against the crystalloid storage protein complex of Douglas fir. The nucleotide sequence of the longest cDNA insert (DF1) was analysed. The amino acid sequence derived from the DNA sequence verified its identity as a legumin-like storage protein (pseudotsugin) and confirmed that the protein is synthesized as a precursor similar to the 11–12S storage globulins. The transcripts corresponding to cDNA insert DF1 were abundant in the early-to mid-stages of embryogenesis in the diploid embryonic axes as well as in the haploid megagametophytic tissue. The deduced amino acid sequence of pseudotsugin consists of a 29 amino acid N-terminal signal peptide preceding the acidic polypeptide region (286 amino acids) and the subsequent basic polypeptide region (212 amino acids). The site for post-transcriptional cleavage of the precursor polypeptide to make the A and B polypeptides is localized between asparagine −315 and glycine −316 and is highly conserved between angiosperms and gymnosperms. The deduced amino acid sequence for the DF1 cDNA clone reveals that pseudotsugin is rich in arginine, glutamic acid and serine and is low in cysteine, methionine and lysine. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequence of Douglas fir pseudotsugin shows between 29–38.5% identity with angiosperm species, 63% identity with interior spruce, and 60% identity with eastern white pine.

Transient gene expression in pine pollen tubes following particle bombardment

Abstract A biolistic particle delivery system was used to genetically transform pollen tubes of three species of white pine (Pinus aristata, P. griffithii and P. monticola). The introduced plasmid DNA contained the GUS coding sequence flanked by the 35S CaMV promoter and NOS terminator sequences. Successful gene delivery was demonstrated by transient GUS expression as evaluated by standard histochemical assay. Distance of target specimens significantly influenced transient GUS expression in all three species of white pine. A target distance of 6 cm resulted in a significant number of transformed pollen tubes in P. aristata and P. griffithii, while distances of 6 and 9 cm resulted in a significant number of transformed pollen tubes in P. monticola. Generally, the number of pollen tubes expressing GUS activity was higher in P. aristata than in P. griffithii and P. monticola. The possibility of using GUS-transformed pollen tubes in conjunction with in vitro fertilization in conifers was examined. Gene expression in pollen tubes was also examined under electron microscopy where the X-glu reaction product occurred as large crystalline electron-dense precipitates in the cytoplasm.