title: Volvox germline-specific genes that are putative targets of RegA repression encode chloroplast proteins.
abstract: In Volvox carteri, regA acts as a master gene to suppress all germ cell functions in somatic cells. Its product, RegA, has features of a transcriptional repressor. Here we report cDNA sequences representing 15 nuclear genes with properties expected of RegA targets: they are expressed strongly in germ cells and in regA-, but not regA+, somatic cells. Two of them encode polypeptides with no recognizable features, but ten (like three previously sequenced ones) encode chloroplast proteins of known function, and the remaining three encode putative chloroplast proteins of unknown function. This suggests that RegA blocks reproductive development in somatic cells by preventing chloroplast biogenesis, thereby making it impossible for the cells to grow enough to reproduce.
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Genetik, Universität Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meissner
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stark
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cresnar
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Kirk
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schmitt
mesh_terms: D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases / Q000235:genetics; D020418:Algal Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000460:Chlorophyta / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D002736:Chloroplasts / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D014450:Electron Transport Complex III; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005854:Germ Cells / Q000502:physiology; D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D010735:Phosphoglycerate Kinase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D012045:Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid
chemical_list: D020418:Algal Proteins; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins; D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins; C037989:Rieske iron-sulfur protein; D010735:Phosphoglycerate Kinase; D000251:Adenosine Triphosphatases; D014450:Electron Transport Complex III