Identification of several soybean cytosolic glutamine synthetase transcripts highly or specifically expressed in nodules: expression studies using one of the corresponding genes in transgenic Lotus corniculatus

The 3' untranslated region of the two cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS(1)) genes in alfalfa (Medicago sativa) regulates transcript stability in response to glutamine

Glutamine synthetase (GS) catalyzes the ATP-dependent condensation of ammonia with glutamate to produce glutamine. The GS enzyme is located either in the chloroplast (GS(2)) or in the cytoplasm (GS(1)). GS(1) is encoded by a small gene family and the members exhibit differential expression pattern mostly attributed to transcriptional regulation. Based on our recent finding that a soybean GS(1) gene, Gmglnβ ( 1 ) is subject to its 3'UTR-mediated post-transcriptional regulation as a transgene in alfalfa (Medicago sativa) we have raised the question of whether the 3'UTR-mediated transcript destabilization is a more universal phenomenon. Gene constructs consisting of the CaMV35S promoter driving the reporter gene, GUS, followed by the 3'UTRs of the two alfalfa GS(1) genes, MsGSa and MsGSb, were introduced into alfalfa and tobacco. The analysis of these transformants suggests that while both the 3'UTRs promote transcript turnover, the MsGSb 3'UTR is more effective than the MsGSa 3'UTR. However, both the 3'UTRs along with Gmglnβ ( 1 ) 3'UTR respond to nitrate as a trigger in transcript turnover. More detailed analysis points to glutamine rather than nitrate as the mediator of transcript turnover. Our data suggests that the 3'UTR-mediated regulation of GS(1) genes at the level of transcript turnover is probably universal and is used for fine-tuning the expression in keeping with the availability of the substrates.

Cloning and characterization of a cytosolic glutamine synthetase from Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze that is upregulated by ABA, SA, and H2O2

A cDNA encoding glutamine synthetase, one of the enzymes of the GS/GOGAT pathway, was cloned from Camellia sinensis (CsGS). The isolated cDNA consists of 1,071 nucleotides encoding a polypeptide of 356 amino acids with an estimated isoelectric point of 6.13. The recombinant protein purified from Escherichia coli using Ni-NTA affinity chromatography showed molecular mass of 39.2 kDa. The purified protein was confirmed by blotting with anti-His antibodies. Catalytic parameters of the protein were determined using glutamate and ATP as substrates. The observed Km was 9 mM and Vmax was 93 U/mg protein with glutamate as substrate, while with ATP Km and Vmax values were 6 mM and 70 U/mg protein, respectively. Purified enzyme showed pH optima at 8. Cations were found to be showing enhancing effect on the activity of GS enzyme and Mg2+ ion exhibited maximum enhancing effect among the various ions used in this study. This enzyme activity increased by 25% in presence of DTT and decreased by 18% when incubated with PMSF. Transcript analysis in tea bud, youngest leaf, showed that CsGS gene expression is stimulated in response to abscisic acid (ABA), salicylic acid (SA), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), while gibberellic acid (GA3) has no influence on its expression levels.

The 3' untranslated region of a soybean cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS1) affects transcript stability and protein accumulation in transgenic alfalfa

Higher plants assimilate nitrogen in the form of ammonia through the concerted activity of glutamine synthetase (GS) and glutamate synthase (GOGAT). The GS enzyme is either located in the cytoplasm (GS1) or in the chloroplast (GS2). Glutamine synthetase 1 is regulated in different plants at the transcriptional level and there are some reports of regulation at the level of protein stability. Here we present data that clearly establish that GS1 in plants is also regulated at the level of transcript turnover and at the translational level. Using a Glycine max (soybean) GS1 transgene, with and without its 3' untranslated region (UTR), driven by the constitutive CaMV 35S promoter in Medicago sativa (alfalfa) and Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco), we show that the 3' UTR plays a major role in both transcript turnover and translation repression in both the leaves and the nodules. Our data suggest that the 3' UTR mediated turnover of the transcript is regulated by a nitrogen metabolite or carbon/nitrogen ratios. We also show that the 3' UTR of the gene for the soybean GS1 confers post-transcriptional regulation on a reporter gene. Our dissection of post-transcriptional and translational levels of regulation of GS in plants shows that the situation in plants strongly resembles that in other organisms where GS is regulated at almost all levels. Multistep regulation of GS shows the high priority given by organisms to regulating and ensuring optimal control of nitrogen substrates and preventing overproduction of glutamine and drainage of the glutamate pool.

Novel expression pattern of cytosolic Gln synthetase in nitrogen-fixing root nodules of the actinorhizal host, Datisca glomerata

Gln synthetase (GS) is the key enzyme of primary ammonia assimilation in nitrogen-fixing root nodules of legumes and actinorhizal (Frankia-nodulated) plants. In root nodules of Datisca glomerata (Datiscaceae), transcripts hybridizing to a conserved coding region of the abundant nodule isoform, DgGS1-1, are abundant in uninfected nodule cortical tissue, but expression was not detectable in the infected zone or in the nodule meristem. Similarly, the GS holoprotein is immunolocalized exclusively to the uninfected nodule tissue. Phylogenetic analysis of the full-length cDNA of DgGS1-1 indicates affinities with cytosolic GS genes from legumes, the actinorhizal species Alnus glutinosa, and nonnodulating species, Vitis vinifera and Hevea brasilensis. The D. glomerata nodule GS expression pattern is a new variant among reported root nodule symbioses and may reflect an unusual nitrogen transfer pathway from the Frankia nodule microsymbiont to the plant infected tissue, coupled to a distinctive nitrogen cycle in the uninfected cortical tissue. Arg, Gln, and Glu are the major amino acids present in D. glomerata nodules, but Arg was not detected at high levels in leaves or roots. Arg as a major nodule nitrogen storage form is not found in other root nodule types except in the phylogenetically related Coriaria. Catabolism of Arg through the urea cycle could generate free ammonium in the uninfected tissue where GS is expressed.

Analysis of the alternative oxidase promoters from soybean

Alternative oxidase (Aox) is a nuclear-encoded mitochondrial protein. In soybean (Glycine max), the three members of the gene family have been shown to be differentially expressed during normal plant development and in response to stresses. To examine the function of the Aox promoters, genomic fragments were obtained for all three soybean genes: Aox1, Aox2a, and Aox2b. The regions of these fragments immediately upstream of the coding regions were used to drive beta-glucuronidase (GUS) expression during transient transformation of soybean suspension culture cells and stable transformation of Arabidopsis. The expression patterns of the GUS reporter genes in soybean cells were in agreement with the presence or absence of the various endogenous Aox proteins, determined by immunoblotting. Deletion of different portions of the upstream regions identified sequences responsible for both positive and negative regulation of Aox gene expression in soybean cells. Reporter gene analysis in Arabidopsis plants showed differential tissue expression patterns driven by the three upstream regions, similar to those reported for the endogenous proteins in soybean. The expression profiles of all five members of the Arabidopsis Aox gene family were examined also, to compare with GUS expression driven by the soybean upstream fragments. Even though the promoter activity of the upstream fragments from soybean Aox2a and Aox2b displayed the same tissue specificity in Arabidopsis as they do in soybean, the most prominently expressed endogenous genes in all tissues of Arabidopsis were of the Aox1 type. Thus although regulation of Aox expression generally appears to involve the same signals in different species, different orthologs of Aox may respond variously to these signals. A comparison of upstream sequences between soybean Aox genes and similarly expressed Arabidopsis Aox genes identified common motifs.

Novel aspects of symbiotic nitrogen fixation uncovered by transcript profiling with cDNA arrays

An array of 2,304 cDNA clones derived from nitrogen-fixing nodules of Lotus japonicus was produced and used to detect differences in relative gene transcript abundance between nodules and uninfected roots. Transcripts of 83 different genes were found to be more abundant in nodules than in roots. More than 50 of these have never before been identified as nodule-induced in any species. Expression of 36 genes was detected in nodules but not in roots. Several known nodulin genes were included among the nodule-induced genes. Also included were genes involved in sucrose breakdown and glycolysis, CO2 recycling, and amino acid synthesis, processes that are known to be accelerated in nodules compared with roots. Genes involved in membrane transport, hormone metabolism, cell wall and protein synthesis, and signal transduction and regulation of transcription were also induced in nodules. Genes that may subvert normal plant defense responses, including two encoding enzymes involved in detoxification of active oxygen species and one that may prohibit phytoalexin synthesis, were also identified. The data represent a rich source of information for hypothesis building and future exploration of symbiotic nitrogen fixation.

Cytosolic glutamine synthetase in soybean is encoded by a multigene family, and the members are regulated in an organ-specific and developmental manner

Gln synthetase (GS) is the key enzyme in N metabolism and it catalyzes the synthesis of Gln from glutamic acid, ATP, and NH4+. There are two major isoforms of GS in plants, a cytosolic form (GS1) and a chloroplastic form (GS2). In leaves, GS2 functions to assimilate ammonia produced by nitrate reduction and photorespiration, and GS1 is the major isoform assimilating NH3 produced by all other metabolic processes, including symbiotic N2 fixation in the nodules. GS1 is encoded by a small multigene family in soybean (Glycine max), and cDNA clones for the different members have been isolated. Based on sequence divergence in the 3'-untranslated region, three distinct classes of GS1 genes have been identified (alpha, beta, and gamma). Genomic Southern analysis and analysis of hybrid-select translation products suggest that each class has two distinct members. The alpha forms are the major isoforms in the cotyledons and young roots. The beta forms, although constitutive in their expression pattern, are ammonia inducible and show high expression in N2-fixing nodules. The gamma1 gene appears to be more nodule specific, whereas the gamma2 gene member, although nodule enhanced, is also expressed in the cotyledons and flowers. The two members of the alpha and beta class of GS1 genes show subtle differences in the expression pattern. Analysis of the promoter regions of the gamma1 and gamma2 genes show sequence conservation around the TATA box but complete divergence in the rest of the promoter region. We postulate that each member of the three GS1 gene classes may be derived from the two ancestral genomes from which the allotetraploid soybean was derived.

The promoter of a cytosolic glutamine synthetase gene from the conifer Pinus sylvestris is active in cotyledons of germinating seeds and light-regulated in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana

We have isolated and characterized a genomic clone encoding Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS). The clone contains the 5' end half of the gene including part of the coding region and 980 bp upstream of the translation initiation codon. The major transcription start site (+1) was mapped around 180 nucleotides upstream of the translation initiation codon. Sequence analysis of the 5'-upstream region of the gene reveals the presence of putative regulatory elements including a poly-CT consensus sequence, a purine-rich tandem repeat and two AT-rich regions. Fusions of the upstream gene region to uidA were shown to be transiently expressed in the cotyledons of germinating pine seeds transformed by microprojectile bombardment. Stable transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana revealed the shoot apical meristem as the major region of heterologous permanent expression in Arabidopsis, in agreement with the expression of the GS gene in Pinus. Moreover, quantitative data derived from fluorometric beta-glucuronidase assays in control and continuous light-grown transgenic Arabidopsis plants indicate that the isolated upstream region of the gene contains regulatory sequences involved in the response to light.

Constitutive overexpression of cytosolic glutamine synthetase (GS1) gene in transgenic alfalfa demonstrates that GS1 may be regulated at the level of RNA stability and protein turnover

Glutamine synthetase (GS) catalyzes the ATP-dependent condensation of NH4+ with glutanate to yield glutamine. Gene constructs consisting of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter driving a cytosolic isoform of GS (GS1) gene have been introduced into alfalfa (Medicago sativa). Although transcripts for the transgene were shown to accumulate to high levels in the leaves, they were undetectable in the nodules. However, significant amounts of beta-glucuronidase activity could be detected in nodules of plants containing the CaMV 35S promoter-beta-glucuronidase gene construct, suggesting that the transcript for the GS1 transgene is not stable in the root nodules. Leaves of alfalfa plants with the CaMV 35S promoter-GS1 gene showed high levels of accumulation of the transcript for the transgene when grown under low-nitrogen conditions and showed a significant drop in the level of GS1 transcripts when fed with high levels of NO3-. However, no increase in GS activity or polypeptide level was detected in the leaves of transgenic plants. The results suggest that GS1 is regulated at the level of RNA stability and protein turnover.

Differential expression of the two cytosolic glutamine synthetase genes in various organs of Medicago truncatula

In order to clarify the physiological roles of the cytosolic forms of glutamine synthetase (GS) in Medicago truncatula, we have performed a detailed analysis of the expression of the two functional cytosolic GS genes, MtGSa and MtGSb in several organs of the plant. Transcriptional fusions were made between the 2.6 or 3.1 kbp 5' upstream regions of MtGSa or MtGSb, respectively, and the reporter gene gusA encoding beta-glucuronidase and introduced into the homologous transgenic system. MtGSa and MtGSb were found to be differentially expressed in most of the organs, both temporally and spatially. The presence of GS proteins at the sites where the promoters were active was confirmed by immunocytochemistry, providing the means to correlate gene expression with the protein products. These studies have shown that the putative MtGSa and MtGSb promoter fragments were sufficient to drive GUS expression in all the tissues and cell types where cytosolic GS proteins were located. This result indicates that the cis acting regulatory elements responsible for conferring the contrasting expression patterns are located within the region upstream of the coding sequences. MtGSa was preferentially expressed in the vascular tissues of almost all the organs examined, whereas MtGSb was preferentially expressed in the root cortex and in leaf pulvini. The location and high abundance of GS in the vascular tissues of almost all the organs analysed suggest that the enzyme encoded by MtGSa plays an important role in the production of nitrogen transport compounds. The enzyme synthesised by MtGSb appears to have more ubiquitous functions for ammonium assimilation and detoxification in a variety of organs.

Isolation of cDNAs encoding two purine biosynthetic enzymes of soybean and expression of the corresponding transcripts in roots and root nodules

Soybean nodule cDNA clones encoding glycinamide ribonucleotide (GAR) synthetase (GMpurD) and GAR transformylase (GMpurN) were isolated by complementation of corresponding Escherichia coli mutants. GAR synthetase and GAR transformylase catalyse the second and the third steps in the de novo purine biosynthesis pathway, respectively. One class of GAR synthetase and three classes of GAR transformylase cDNA clones were identified. Northern blot analysis clearly shows that these purine biosynthetic genes are highly expressed in young and mature nodules but weakly expressed in roots and leaves. Expression levels of GMpurD and GMpurN mRNAs were not enhanced when ammonia was provided to non-nodulated roots.

Localization of tobacco cytosolic glutamine synthetase enzymes and the corresponding transcripts shows organ- and cell-specific patterns of protein synthesis and gene expression

The subcellular localization of glutamine synthetase in tobacco and the differential expression of two genes encoding cytosolic enzyme was investigated using both immunocytochemistry and in situ hybridization. Two full length cDNA clones each encoding cytosolic GS (Gln 1-3 and Gln 1-5) were isolated from a tobacco seeding cDNA library. A strong homology was found in the coding region of the two clones whereas the 3'- and 5'-untranslated sequences were dissimilar. In order to determine the levels of transcription, specific sequences from Gln1-3 and Gln1-5 were used in an RNAse protection assay. This experiment clearly showed that the gene encoding Gln1-3 is expressed in roots and flowers whereas the gene encoding Gln1-5 is transcribed at a high level in stems and at a lower level in roots and flowers. Immunogold labelling was used to examine the subcellular and cellular distribution of glutamine synthetase in vegetative and reproductive organs of tobacco plants. In mature leaf tissue or petals and sepals, plastidic GS was visualised only in the stroma matrix of chloroplasts and plastids. Cytosolic GS was detected in a number of vegetative or reproductive organs including leaves and flowers. In leaves cytosolic GS was preferentially located in the vascular tissue. In situ hybridization was performed using sections of tobacco organs and specific antisense RNA probes to the genes encoding Gln1-3 and Gln1-5. Gln1-5 transcripts were localised in the vascular tissues of stems and roots whereas Gln1-3 transcripts were detected in all root cells and floral organs including petals, sepals and anthers.