Stepwise effects of cytokinin activity and DNA synthesis upon mitotic cycle events in partially synchronized tobacco cells

A low content in zeatin type cytokinins is not restrictive for the occurrence of G1/S transition in tobacco BY-2 cells

Theories on the importance of cytokinins in G1/S transition control are manifold and contradictory. By establishing a double A(phi-PZ block, maximal synchronization of a BY-2 suspension culture was obtained to investigate the effect of cytokinin depletion on G1/S transition. Lovastatin was used as a specific inhibitor of cytokinin biosynthesis. Flow cytometry showed that the G1/S transition occurred regardless of the cytokinin drop. This observation indicates an extremely low dose requiry for that stage of the cell cycle. It is very likely that precisely the downregulation of zeatin type cytokinins matters for the G1/S transition to occur, since cytokinin addition at early G1 blocked the cycle at G1/S.

Levels of endogenous cytokinins, indole-3-acetic acid and abscisic acid during the cell cycle of synchronized tobacco BY-2 cells

Correlation between cell cycle progression and endogenous levels of plant hormones was studied in synchronized tobacco BY-2 cell suspension cultures. Sixteen different cytokinins, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and abscisic acid (ABA) were extracted using solid-phase anion exchange chromatography in combination with immunoaffinity purification, and quantified by mass spectrometry. No significant correlation could be identified for IAA and ABA. In contrast, there were sharp peaks in the levels of specific cytokinins (zeatin- and dihydrozeatin-type) at the end of the S phase and during mitosis. The levels of other cytokinins analyzed, including zeatins N- and O-glucosides, remained low, suggesting that the increased amounts of their corresponding non-glucosylated form resulted from de novo synthesis. These findings suggest that zeatin- and dihydrozeatin-type cytokinins might play a specific regulatory role in the progression of the plant cell cycle. One hypothesis to explain cytokinin action is based on a specific interaction with kinases that regulate cell cycle progression, as has been recently shown for the cytokinin analogue olomoucine.

The Nicotiana tabacum genome encodes two cytoplasmic thioredoxin genes which are differently expressed

A Nicotiana tabacum thioredoxin h gene (EMBL Accession No. Z11803) encoding a new thioredoxin (called h2) was isolated using thioredoxin h1 cDNA (X58527), and represents the first thioredoxin h gene isolated from a higher plant. It encodes a polypeptide of 118 amino acids with the conserved thioredoxin active site Trp-Cys-Gly-Pro-Cys. This gene comprises two introns which have lengths of 1071 and 147 bp respectively, and three exons which encode peptides of 29, 41 and 48 amino acids, respectively. This thioredoxin h shows 66% identity with the amino acid sequence of thioredoxin h1 (X58527) and only around 35% with the choroplastic thioredoxins. The two thioredoxins, h1 and h2, do not have any signal peptides and are most probably cytoplasmic. Using the 3' regions of the mRNAs, two probes specific for thioredoxins h1 and h2 have been prepared. Southern blot analysis shows that thioredoxin sequences are present in only two genomic EcoRI fragments: a 3.3 kb fragment encodes h1 and a 4.5 kb fragment encodes h2. Analysis of the ancestors of the allotetraploid N. tabacum shows that thioredoxin h2 is present in N. sylvestris and N. tomentosiformis but that thioredoxin h1 is absent from both putative ancestors. Thus, the thioredoxin h1 gene has probably been recently introduced in to N. tabacum as a gene of agronomic importance, or linked to such genes. Northern blot analysis shows that both genes are expressed in N. tabacum, mostly in organs or tissues that contain growing cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

cDNA nucleotide sequence and expression of a tobacco cytoplasmic ribosomal protein L2 gene

The ribosomal protein L2 is an essential component of the ribosomal large subunit by its relation to the peptidyl transferase reaction, subunit association and elongation factor G-GTP binding. We have isolated a 937 nucleotide long cDNA encoding a cytoplasmic ribosomal L2 protein. Its deduced protein contains 260 amino acid residues and shows 65% identity with eucaryotic RL2 but only 32% identity with the chloroplast homologue. In addition, the protein presents the PROSITE signature which matches all the 50S and 60S L2 proteins and the two residues involved in the peptidyl transferase activity. The corresponding mRNA is accumulated in young plant tissues, in growing cell suspension and in germinating seeds but is not detectable in mature plant tissues, stationary cell suspension and in dry seeds. The mRNA accumulation is correlated with the growth process. Southern blot hybridization shows that cytoplasmic ribosomal protein L2 is encoded by two types of gene which could originate from each parent. highly homologous L2 genes were also detected by Southern blots in the genomes of several monocot and dicot plant species.

Immobilization of cells of Nicotiana tabacum L. on polyphenyleneoxide coated with poly-L-lysine

Cells of Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Wisconsin 38 were immobilized on poly (2,6-dimethyl)-p-phenyleneoxide in powder form (Sorfix) coated with poly-L-lysine (molecular weight 40 000 daltons). The dependence of cell immobilization on the amount of bound polyL-lysine was estimated.

mRNAs newly synthesized by tobacco mesophyll protoplasts are wound-inducible

We have used 2-dimensional (2D) non-equilibrium pH gradient gel electrophoresis (NEPHGE) of in vitro synthesized proteins and northern hybridization with labelled cDNAs coding for three pathogenesis related (P.R.) proteins, to analyze the shift in mRNA content induced by the isolation and culture of tobacco mesophyll protoplasts. The in vitro protein pattern of mRNAs from freshly isolated protoplasts is characterized by the absence of most leaf spots and the appearance of 19 new spots. After 6 hours of culture, the mRNAs coding for the P.R. proteins become detectable and after 12 hours the protoplasts contain an mRNA population almost typical of callus cells. The different steps involved in the isolation and culture of protoplasts were analysed. Cutting off the leaf and sterilization do not change the mRNA set. In contrast, the mechanical injury applied to the leaf in order to facilitate the penetration of the enzymatic mixture induces a modification of the mRNA content identical to that resulting from protoplast isolation. Wounding is the essential event inducing dedifferentiation. Varying the culture medium and conditions leads to only limited modifications of the mRNA pattern. These results are discussed on the basis of present knowledge of the reaction of the plant to wounding and we suggest that wound healing callus and in vitro callus correspond to the same differentiation state.

In vitro transcription from cauliflower mosaic virus promoters by a cell-free extract from tobacco cells

We have studied transcription from the cauliflower mosaic virus 19S and 35S promoters in a cell-free system derived from tobacco cells in suspension culture. While a whole-cell extract is incapable of detectable transcription from these promoters, successive purification by column chromatography allows the preparation of two fractions which contain all factors necessary for transcription from the 19S promoter. In contrast, transcription from the 35S promoter leads to the accumulation of short RNAs. This accumulation can only be partially alleviated by modifying the conditions of transcription.

Preparation by two-dimensional electrophoresis of proteins for antibody production: antibodies against proteins whose synthesis is reduced by auxin in tobacco mesophyll protoplasts

Using phenol extraction from tobacco callus, we have prepared extracts with a high protein content. These proteins were separated in cylindrical non-equilibrium pH gradient gels and visualized by dipping in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-containing solution. Three gel sections, each containing proteins previously detected as abundantly synthesized in tobacco mesophyll protoplasts and whose synthesis is reduced by auxin application, were excised from each gel and collected. These proteins were further separated on slab SDS gels and protein bands were excised after Coomassie Brilliant Blue R-250 staining and used to inject three rabbits. After one booster, highly specific antibodies were detected in their sera by ELISA and immunoblotting. Using these sera we have confirmed that the corresponding proteins are identical in callus and mesophyll protoplast and demonstrated that they are abundantly accumulated in tobacco roots but are undetectable in aerial organs and seeds.

5,6-Dichlorobenzimidazole-1-beta-D-riboside, specific inhibitor of cytokinin activity in tobacco cell suspension cultures

Tobacco cell suspension cultures were supplemented with 4 to 10 microM 5,6-dichloro-1-beta-D-ribofuranosyl-benzimidazole (DBR). The cell suspensions were cultured in the presence or without a cytokinin, kinetin (N6-furfuryladenine). The responses of the cultures to DRB and (or) kinetin were measured by the evolution of cell mass or cell counts in the cultures, as a function of time or kinetin concentration. Chlorophyll biosynthesis was also used as a test-response to cytokinin and (or) DRB activities. It was concluded that DRB behaves as a specific inhibitor of the physiological responses to cytokinins. The evolution of the inhibition ratio versus kinetin concentration shows that DRB is not a competitor of the cytokinins.

DNA synthesis in cytokinin-autotrophic tobacco cells : Effect of bromodeoxyuridine, fluorodeoxyuridine, and kinetin

DNA isolated from various Nicotiana tabacum cell types, differing in their degree of hormone autotrophy and incubated in the presence of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdUrd), was analyzed by isopycnic CsCl gradient centrifugation. All cell types incorporate BrdUrd into DNA in such a way that hybrid DNA is formed with 60-80% of thymine (Thy) residues replaced by bromouracil (BrUra) in the newly synthesized strand. This DNA is not replicated further under ordinary culture conditions. Whereas in "normal" hormone-dependent cells this state is final and cells necrotize, in tumor (cytokinin-auxin autotrophic) and cytokinin-autotrophic cells a mechanism is induced leading to the reduction of BrUra content in DNA. As a result a decrease in the buoyant density (in CsCl) of BrUra DNA can be observed. In the case of cytokinin-autotrophic cells supplemented with kinetin, the buoyant density of the whole DNA decreases gradually to the value of that of unsubstituted DNA, but specific radioactivities of different DNA fractions reflect the retention of the pyrimidine ring of BrUra in DNA. This is interpreted as debromination of DNA in situ. The process can be inhibited by fluorodeoxyuridine (FdUrd) and deoxycytidine (dCyd). Moreover, FdUrd (but not dCyd) allows replication of hybrid DNA in tumor cells in such a way that HH DNA with all Thy residues replaced by BrUra is formed. For cytokinin-autotrophic cells FdUrd and kinetin are required. In hormone-dependent cells replication of hybrid DNA cannot be induced under any conditions. Most of these conclusions complement our previous findings that BrdUrd tolerance in hormone-autotrophic tobacco cells in hormone controlled. It is postulated that a modulation of thymidylate synthetase specificity is one factor affecting the level of BrUra substitution in DNA. The possibility of cytokinins being involved in the control of DNA synthesis is discussed.

Hormonal control of tobacco protoplast nucleic acid metabolism during in vitro culture

Tobacco mesophyll protoplasts cultivated in vitro do not synthesize a measurable quantity of chloroplastic ribosomal RNA, but actively synthesize cytoplasmic ribosomal RNA, polyadenylated RNA, and proteins. These syntheses are essentially independent of the presence of hormones in the culture medium and are thus related to the ageing phenomenon induced by isolation from the plant and in-vitro culture. At all stages of culture and in all culture media, protoplasts incorporate low levels of thymidine into their DNA. However, the incorporation of considerable quantities of thymidine, indicative of the S phase, only takes place after 25-30 h and requires the presence of auxin and cytokinin.

Preferential incorporation of an exogenous cytokinin, N6-benzyladenine, into 18S and 25S ribosomal RNA of tobacco cells in suspension culture

Cytokinin-requiring tobacco cells were incubated for 10 h in the presence of a labeled cytokinin. N6-benzyl-[2-3H]Ade, and of [8-14C]Ado. After alkaline hydrolysis of total RNA and fractionation of the resulting nucleotides, 80 per cent of the 3H radioactivity of RNA were recovered as the N6-benzyl-Ado nucleotide, covalently inserted into polynucleotidic chains. The N6-benzyl-Ado nucleotide was not significantly labled by 14C: at most one part of this nucleotide per 10 000 may result from a transfer of the benzyl moiety to adenyl residues in preformed RNA. Thus, the covalent insertion of N6-benzyl-Ade into RNA involves the intact N6-substituted base. Total RNA was fractionated either by sucrose density gradient centrifugation or by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. All identified RNA species were shown to contain N6-benzyl-Ade. The insertion frequency, measured as the molecular proportion of N6-benzyl-Ade to the total base content, was 3 to 4 times larger in 25S and 18S rRNA than in 5S and 4S RNA. The amount of N6-benzyl-Ade inserted into cytoplasmic ribosomal RNA accounted for about 90 per cent of the amount incorporated into total RNA. Electrophoresis of denatured RNA in the presence of formamide provided additional evidence that N6-benzyl-Ade was indeed incorporated into RNA molecules.

Control of cell division in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by methionyl-tRNA

We suggest that two events are necessary for an asynchronous population of cells to undergo arrest in the GI phase of the cell cycle upon nutrient starvation. First, passage through GI must be prevented by a deficiency of some metabolic intermediate. Since this intermediate may act indirectly to arrest division, we designate it the "signal". We have found three conditions under which Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells arrest division in GI: sulfate starvation of a prototroph, methionine starvation of an auxotroph, or a shift of a conditional methionyl-tRNA synthetase mutant [L-methionine: tRNA Met ligase (AMP-forming), EC 6.1.1.10] to a restrictive condition. We interpret these results to indicate that the signal for sulfate starvation in S. cerevisiae is generated near the end of the sulfate assimilation pathway (at or beyond the formation of mehtionyl-tRNA). As a unifying hypothesis, we propose that the signal for all nutrients is generated at the level of protein biosynthesis.

Regulation of polyribosome formation and cell division in cultured soybean cells by cytokinin

Cytokinin was shown to be required for cell division in cultured cells of Glycine max var. Sodifury. This cytokinin-induced mitotic activity was correlated with a high cellular content of polysomes. Within 24 h after transfer to a cytokinin-containing medium there was a 4”5-fold increase in the percentage of ribosomes bound as polyribosomes, as determined by sucrose density gradient centrifugation of extracted ribosomal material. Relatively high levels of polysomes and mitotic activity were maintained through the first 6 days of the culture period on cytokinin-containing medium. Thereafter, both cell division activity and the percentage of polyribosomes declined progressively with increasing time in culture. A comparatively small increase in polyribosomes occurred within 24 h of transfer to medium lacking cytokinins, followed by the progressive decline of the level of polyribosomes. The time course of cytokinin-induced polyribosome formation was determined by treating cells with cytokinin after they had been cultured for 24 h on a medium lacking cytokinin. Under these conditions there was a rapid increase in polyribosomes over the next 3 h with no detectable lag period, and near maximal levels of polyribosomes after 6 h of treatment. The initial stimulation of polyribosome formation by cytokinin was not blocked by actinomycin D. Cytokinin was shown to have a comparatively small effect on the ribonuclease activity in extracts of these cells.