Publikationen - Molekulare Signalverarbeitung

Arabidopsis thaliana contains a large number of genes that encode carboxylic acid-activating enzymes, including nine long-chain fatty acyl-CoA synthetases, four 4-coumarate:CoA ligases (4CL), and 25 4CL-like proteins of unknown biochemical function. Because of their high structural and sequence similarity with bona fide 4CLs and their highly hydrophobic putative substrate-binding pockets, the 4CL-like proteins At4g05160 and At5g63380 were selected for detailed analysis. Following heterologous expression, the purified proteins were subjected to a large scale screen to identify their preferred in vitro substrates. This study uncovered a significant activity of At4g05160 with medium-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids carrying a phenyl substitution, long-chain fatty acids, as well as the jasmonic acid precursors 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid and 3-oxo-2-(2′-pentenyl)-cyclopentane-1-hexanoic acid. The closest homolog of At4g05160, namely At5g63380, showed high activity with long-chain fatty acids and 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid, the latter representing the most efficiently converted substrate. By using fluorescent-tagged variants, we demonstrated that both 4CL-like proteins are targeted to leaf peroxisomes. Collectively, these data demonstrate that At4g05160 and At5g63380 have the capacity to contribute to jasmonic acid biosynthesis by initiating the β-oxidative chain shortening of its precursors.

Autoregulatory mechanisms have been reported in the rhizobial and the mycorrhizal symbiosis. Autoregulation means that already existing nodules or an existing root colonization by an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus systemically suppress subsequent nodule formation/root colonization in other parts of the root system. Mutants of some legumes lost their ability to autoregulate the nodule number and thus display a supernodulating phenotype. On studying the effect of pre-inoculation of one side of a split-root system with an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus on subsequent mycorrhization in the second side of the split-root system of a wild-type soybean (Glycine max L.) cv. Bragg and its supernodulating mutant nts1007, we observed a clear suppressional effect in the wild-type, whereas further root colonization in the split-root system of the mutant nts1007 was not suppressed. These data strongly indicate that the mechanisms involved in supernodulation also affect mycorrhization and support the hypothesis that the autoregulation in the rhizobial and the mycorrhizal symbiosis is controlled in a similar manner. The accumulation patterns of the plant hormones IAA, ABA and Jasmonic acid (JA) in non-inoculated control plants and split-root systems of inoculated plants with one mycorrhizal side of the split-root system and one non-mycorrhizal side, indicate an involvement of IAA in the autoregulation of mycorrhization. Mycorrhizal colonization of soybeans also resulted in a strong induction of ABA and JA levels, but on the basis of our data the role of these two phytohormones in mycorrhizal autoregulation is questionable.

12-Hydroxyjasmonate, also known as tuberonic acid, was first isolated from Solanum tuberosum and was shown to have tuber-inducing properties. It is derived from the ubiquitously occurring jasmonic acid, an important signaling molecule mediating diverse developmental processes and plant defense responses. We report here that the gene AtST2a from Arabidopsis thaliana encodes a hydroxyjasmonate sulfotransferase. The recombinant AtST2a protein was found to exhibit strict specificity for 11- and 12-hydroxyjasmonate with Km values of 50 and 10 μm, respectively. Furthermore, 12-hydroxyjasmonate and its sulfonated derivative are shown to be naturally occurring inA. thaliana. The exogenous application of methyljasmonate to A. thaliana plants led to increased levels of both metabolites, whereas treatment with 12-hydroxyjasmonate led to increased level of 12-hydroxyjasmonate sulfate without affecting the endogenous level of jasmonic acid. AtST2a expression was found to be induced following treatment with methyljasmonate and 12-hydroxyjasmonate. In contrast, the expression of the methyljasmonate-responsive gene Thi2.1, a marker gene in plant defense responses, is not induced upon treatment with 12-hydroxyjasmonate indicating the existence of independent signaling pathways responding to jasmonic acid and 12-hydroxyjasmonic acid. Taken together, the results suggest that the hydroxylation and sulfonation reactions might be components of a pathway that inactivates excess jasmonic acid in plants. Alternatively, the function of AtST2a might be to control the biological activity of 12-hydroxyjasmonic acid.

The jasmonic acid (JA)-dependent regulation of the Thi2.1 gene had previously been exploited for setting up a genetic screen for the isolation of signal transduction mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. that constitutively express the thionin gene. Several cet mutants had been isolated which showed a constitutive expression of the thionin gene. These cet mutants, except for one, also showed spontaneous leaf cell necrosis and were up-regulated in the expression of the PR1 gene, reactions often associated with the systemic acquired resistance (SAR) pathway. Four of these cet mutants, cet1, cet2, cet3 and cet4.1 were crossed with the fad triple and coi1 mutants that are blocked at two steps within the JA-dependent signaling pathway, and with transgenic NahG plants that are deficient in salicylic acid (SA) and are unable to activate SAR. Analysis of the various double-mutant lines revealed that the four cet genes act within a signaling cascade at or prior to branch points from which not only JA-dependent signals but also SA-dependent signaling and cell death pathways diverge.

Plants are sessile organisms. Consequently they have to adapt constantly to fluctuations in the environment. Some of these changes involve essential factors such as nutrients, light, and water. Plants have evolved independent systems to sense nutrients such as phosphate and nitrogen. However, many of the environmental factors may reach levels which represent stress for the plant. The fluctuations can range between moderate and unfavorable, and the factors can be of biotic or abiotic origin. Among the biotic factors influencing plant life are pathogens and herbivores. In case of bacteria and fungi, symbiotic interactions such as nitrogen-fixating nodules and mycorrhiza, respectively, may be established. In case of insects, a tritrophic interaction of herbivores, carnivores, and plants may occur mutualistically or parasitically. Among the numerous abiotic factors are low temperature, frost, heat, high light conditions, ultraviolet light, darkness, oxidation stress, hypoxia, wind, touch, nutrient imbalance, salt stress, osmotic adjustment, water deficit, and desiccation.In the last decade jasmonates were recognized as being signals in plant responses to most of these biotic and abiotic factors. Signaling via jasmonates was found to occur intracellularly, and systemically as well as interorganismically. Jasmonates are a group of ubiquitously occurring plant growth regulators originally found as the major constituents in the etheric oil of jasmine, and were first suggested to play a role in senescence due to a strong senescence-promoting effect. Subsequently, numerous developmental processes were described in which jasmonates exhibited hormone-like properties. Recent knowledge is reviewed here on jasmonates and their precursors, the octadecanoids. After discussing occurrence and biosynthesis, emphasis is placed upon the signal transduction pathways in plant stress responses in which jasmonates act a signal. Finally, examples are described on the role of jasmonates in developmental processes.

Allene oxide cyclase (EC 5.3.99.6) catalyzes the stereospecific cyclization of an unstable allene oxide to (9S,13S)-12-oxo-(10,15Z)-phytodienoic acid, the ultimate precursor of jasmonic acid. This dimeric enzyme has previously been purified, and two almost identical N-terminal peptides were found, suggesting allene oxide cyclase to be a homodimeric protein. Furthermore, the native protein was N-terminally processed. Using degenerate primers, a polymerase chain reaction fragment could be generated from tomato, which was further used to isolate a full-length cDNA clone of 1 kilobase pair coding for a protein of 245 amino acids with a molecular mass of 26 kDa. Whereas expression of the whole coding region failed to detect allene oxide cyclase activity, a 5′-truncated protein showed high activity, suggesting that additional amino acids impair the enzymatic function. Steric analysis of the 12-oxophytodienoic acid formed by the recombinant enzyme revealed exclusive (>99%) formation of the 9S,13Senantiomer. Exclusive formation of this enantiomer was also found in wounded tomato leaves. Southern analysis and genetic mapping revealed the existence of a single gene for allene oxide cyclase located on chromosome 2 of tomato. Inspection of the N terminus revealed the presence of a chloroplastic transit peptide, and the location of allene oxide cyclase protein in that compartment could be shown by immunohistochemical methods. Concomitant with the jasmonate levels, the accumulation of allene oxide cyclase mRNA was transiently induced after wounding of tomato leaves.

In this paper we report the in-planta activity of the ribosome-inactivating protein JIP60, a 60-kDa jasmonate-induced protein from barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), in transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants. All plants expressing the complete JIP60 cDNA under the control of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter exhibited conspicuous and similar phenotypic alterations, such as slower growth, shorter internodes, lanceolate leaves, reduced root development, and premature senescence of leaves. Microscopic inspection of developing leaves showed a loss of residual meristems and higher degree of vacuolation of mesophyll cells as compared to the wild type. When probed with an antiserum which was immunoreactive against both the N- and the C-terminal half of JIP60, a polypeptide with a molecular mass of about 30 kDa, most probably a processed JIP60 product, could be detected. Phenotypic alterations could be correlated with the differences in the detectable amount of the JIP60 mRNA and processed JIP60 protein. The protein biosynthesis of the transformants was characterized by an increased polysome/monosome ratio but a decreased in-vivo translation activity. These findings suggest that JIP60 perturbs the translation machinery in planta. An immunohistological analysis using the JIP60 antiserum indicated that the immunoreactive polypeptide(s) are located mainly in the nucleus of transgenic tobacco leaf cells and to a minor extent in the cytoplasm.

Lipid bodies are degraded during germination. Whereas some proteins, e.g. oleosins, are synthesized during the formation of lipid bodies of maturating seeds, a new set of proteins, including a specific form of lipoxygenase (LOX; EC 1.13.11.12), is detectable in lipid bodies during the stage of fat degradation in seed germination. In cotyledons of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seedlings at day 4 of germination, the most conspicuous staining with anti-LOX antibodies was observed in the cytosol. At very early stages of germination, however, the LOX form present in large amounts and synthesized preferentially was the lipid-body LOX. This was demonstrated by immunocytochemical staining of cotyledons from 1-h and 24-h-old seedlings: the immunodecoration of sections of 24-h-old seedlings with anti-LOX antiserum showed label exclusively correlated with lipid bodies of around 3 μm in diameter. In accordance, the profile of LOX protein isolated from lipid bodies during various stages of germination showed a maximum at day 1. By measuring biosynthesis of the protein in vivo we demonstrated that the highest rates of synthesis of lipid-body LOX occurred at day 1 of germination. The early and selective appearance of a LOX form associated with lipid bodies at this stage of development is discussed.