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Chiang BJ, Lin KY, Chen YF, Huang CY, Goh FJ, Huang LT, Chen LH, Wu CH. Development of a tightly regulated copper-inducible transient gene expression system in Nicotiana benthamiana incorporating a suicide exon and Cre recombinase. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2024; 244:318-331. [PMID: 39081031 DOI: 10.1111/nph.20021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2024] [Accepted: 07/15/2024] [Indexed: 09/17/2024]
Abstract
Chemical-inducible gene expression systems are commonly used to regulate gene expression for functional genomics in various plant species. However, a convenient system that can tightly regulate transgene expression in Nicotiana benthamiana is still lacking. In this study, we developed a tightly regulated copper-inducible system that can control transgene expression and conduct cell death assays in N. benthamiana. We tested several chemical-inducible systems using Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression and found that the copper-inducible system exhibited the least concerns regarding leakiness in N. benthamiana. Although the copper-inducible system can control the expression of some tested reporters, it is not sufficiently tight to regulate certain tested hypersensitive cell death responses. Using the MoClo-based synthetic biology approach, we incorporated the suicide exon HyP5SM/OsL5 and Cre/LoxP as additional regulatory elements to enhance the tightness of the regulation. This new design allowed us to tightly control the hypersensitive cell death induced by several tested leucine-rich repeat-containing proteins and their matching avirulence factors, and it can be easily applied to regulate the expression of other transgenes in transient expression assays. Our findings offer new approaches for both fundamental and translational studies in plant functional genomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bing-Jen Chiang
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
| | - Kuan-Yu Lin
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Feng Chen
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
| | - Ching-Yi Huang
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
| | - Foong-Jing Goh
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
| | - Lo-Ting Huang
- Department of Plant Pathology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402 202, Taiwan
| | - Li-Hung Chen
- Department of Plant Pathology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402 202, Taiwan
- Advanced Plant and Food Crop Biotechnology Center, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402 202, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Hang Wu
- Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, 115 201, Taiwan
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Diogo-Jr R, de Resende Von Pinho EV, Pinto RT, Zhang L, Condori-Apfata JA, Pereira PA, Vilela DR. Maize heat shock proteins-prospection, validation, categorization and in silico analysis of the different ZmHSP families. STRESS BIOLOGY 2023; 3:37. [PMID: 37981586 PMCID: PMC10482818 DOI: 10.1007/s44154-023-00104-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
Among the plant molecular mechanisms capable of effectively mitigating the effects of adverse weather conditions, the heat shock proteins (HSPs), a group of chaperones with multiple functions, stand out. At a time of full progress on the omic sciences, they look very promising in the genetic engineering field, especially in order to conceive superior genotypes, potentially tolerant to abiotic stresses (AbSts). Recently, some works concerning certain families of maize HSPs (ZmHSPs) were published. However, there was still a lack of a study that, with a high degree of criteria, would fully conglomerate them. Using distinct but complementary strategies, we have prospected as many ZmHSPs candidates as possible, gathering more than a thousand accessions. After detailed data mining, we accounted for 182 validated ones, belonging to seven families, which were subcategorized into classes with potential for functional parity. In them, we identified dozens of motifs with some degree of similarity with proteins from different kingdoms, which may help explain some of their still poorly understood means of action. Through in silico and in vitro approaches, we compared their expression levels after controlled exposure to several AbSts' sources, applied at diverse tissues, on varied phenological stages. Based on gene ontology concepts, we still analyzed them from different perspectives of term enrichment. We have also searched, in model plants and close species, for potentially orthologous genes. With all these new insights, which culminated in a plentiful supplementary material, rich in tables, we aim to constitute a fertile consultation source for those maize researchers attracted by these interesting stress proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rubens Diogo-Jr
- Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, (47907), USA.
- Department of Agriculture, Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras, MG, (37200-900), Brazil.
| | | | - Renan Terassi Pinto
- Faculty of Philosophy and Sciences at Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo (USP), Ribeirao Preto, SP, (14040-901), Brazil
| | - Lingrui Zhang
- Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, (47907), USA
| | - Jorge Alberto Condori-Apfata
- Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, (47907), USA
- Faculty of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences, Universidad Nacional Toribio Rodriguez de Mendoza de Amazonas (UNTRM), Chachapoyas, AM, (01001), Peru
| | - Paula Andrade Pereira
- Department of Agriculture, Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras, MG, (37200-900), Brazil
| | - Danielle Rezende Vilela
- Department of Agriculture, Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras, MG, (37200-900), Brazil
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Forestier ECF, Cording AC, Loake GJ, Graham IA. An Engineered Heat-Inducible Expression System for the Production of Casbene in Nicotiana benthamiana. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:11425. [PMID: 37511181 PMCID: PMC10379985 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241411425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2023] [Revised: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Plants respond to heat stress by producing heat-shock proteins. These are regulated by heat-shock promoters containing regulatory elements, which can be harnessed to control protein expression both temporally and spatially. In this study, we designed heat-inducible promoters to produce the diterpene casbene in Nicotiana benthamiana, through a multi-step metabolic pathway. To potentially increase gene transcription, we coupled heat-shock elements from Arabidopsis thaliana Hsp101 or Glycine max GmHsp17.3-B promoters, CAAT and TATA boxes from CaMV 35S, and the 5'UTR from the tobacco mosaic virus. The resulting four chimeric promoters fused to a green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter showed that the variant Ara2 had the strongest fluorescent signal after heat shock. We next created a 4-gene cassette driven by the Ara2 promoter to allow for exogenous synthesis of casbene and transformed this multigene construct along with a selectable marker gene into Nicotiana benthamiana. Metabolic analysis on the transgenic lines revealed that continuous heat outperforms heat shock, with up to 1 μg/mg DW of casbene detected after 32 h of uninterrupted 40 °C heat. These results demonstrate the potential of heat-inducible promoters as synthetic biology tools for metabolite production in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edith C F Forestier
- Centre for Novel Agricultural Products (CNAP), Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Amy C Cording
- Centre for Novel Agricultural Products (CNAP), Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Gary J Loake
- Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, Daniel Rutherford Building, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Kings Buildings, Mayfield Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JH, UK
| | - Ian A Graham
- Centre for Novel Agricultural Products (CNAP), Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York YO10 5DD, UK
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Andleeb T, Knight E, Borrill P. Wheat NAM genes regulate the majority of early monocarpic senescence transcriptional changes including nitrogen remobilization genes. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2022; 13:6760127. [PMID: 36226803 PMCID: PMC9911049 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkac275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Abstract
Senescence enables the remobilization of nitrogen and micronutrients from vegetative tissues of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) into the grain. Understanding the molecular players in this process will enable the breeding of wheat lines with tailored grain nutrient content. The NAC transcription factor NAM-B1 is associated with earlier senescence and higher levels of grain protein, iron, and zinc contents due to increased nutrient remobilization. To investigate how related NAM genes control nitrogen remobilization at the molecular level, we carried out a comparative transcriptomic study using flag leaves at 7 time points (3, 7, 10, 13, 15, 19, and 26 days after anthesis) in wild type and NAM RNA interference lines with reduced NAM gene expression. Approximately 2.5 times more genes were differentially expressed in wild type than NAM RNA interference plants during this early senescence time course (6,508 vs 2,605 genes). In both genotypes, differentially expressed genes were enriched for gene ontology terms related to photosynthesis, hormones, amino acid transport, and nitrogen metabolism. However, nitrogen metabolism genes including glutamine synthetase (GS1 and GS2), glutamate decarboxylase (GAD), glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH), and asparagine synthetase (ASN1) showed stronger or earlier differential expression in wild-type than in NAM RNA interference plants, consistent with higher nitrogen remobilization. The use of time course data identified the dynamics of NAM-regulated and NAM-independent gene expression changes during senescence and provides an entry point to functionally characterize the pathways regulating senescence and nutrient remobilization in wheat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tayyaba Andleeb
- Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK,Department of Plant Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 15320, Pakistan
| | - Emilie Knight
- Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK
| | - Philippa Borrill
- Corresponding author: Department of Crop Genetics, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK.
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Kumar J, Kumar A, Sen Gupta D, Kumar S, DePauw RM. Reverse genetic approaches for breeding nutrient-rich and climate-resilient cereal and food legume crops. Heredity (Edinb) 2022; 128:473-496. [PMID: 35249099 PMCID: PMC9178024 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-022-00513-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2021] [Revised: 02/10/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
In the last decade, advancements in genomics tools and techniques have led to the discovery of many genes. Most of these genes still need to be characterized for their associated function and therefore, such genes remain underutilized for breeding the next generation of improved crop varieties. The recent developments in different reverse genetic approaches have made it possible to identify the function of genes controlling nutritional, biochemical, and metabolic traits imparting drought, heat, cold, salinity tolerance as well as diseases and insect-pests. This article focuses on reviewing the current status and prospects of using reverse genetic approaches to breed nutrient-rich and climate resilient cereal and food legume crops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jitendra Kumar
- Division of Crop Improvement, ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur, India.
| | - Ajay Kumar
- Department of Plant Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, 58108, USA
| | - Debjyoti Sen Gupta
- Division of Crop Improvement, ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur, India
| | - Sachin Kumar
- Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, 250 004, India
| | - Ron M DePauw
- Advancing Wheat Technologies, 118 Strathcona Rd SW, Calgary, AB, T3H 1P3, Canada
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Park J, Demirer GS, Cheung LS. Toolboxes for plant systems biology research. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2022; 75:102692. [PMID: 35144172 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2022.102692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The terms 'systems' and 'synthetic biology' are often used together, with most scientists striding between the two fields rather than adhering to a single side. Often too, scientists want to understand a system to inform the design of gene circuits that could endow it with new functions. However, this does not need to be the progression of research, as synthetic constructs can help improve our understanding of a system. Here, we review synthetic biology tool kits with the potential to overcome pleiotropic effects, compensatory mechanisms, and redundancy in plants. Combined with -omics techniques, these tools could reveal novel insights on plant growth and development, an aim that has gained renewed urgency given the impact of climate change on crop productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihyun Park
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Gozde S Demirer
- Department of Plant Biology and Genome Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Lily S Cheung
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
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