The CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON1 gene of Arabidopsis regulates shoot apical meristem formation.
In higher plants, molecular mechanisms regulating shoot apical meristem (SAM) formation and organ separation are largely unknown. The CUC1 (CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON1) and CUC2 are functionally redundant genes that are involved in these processes. We cloned the CUC1 gene by a map-based approach, and found that it encodes a NAC-domain protein highly homologous to CUC2. CUC1 mRNA was detected in the presumptive SAM during embryogenesis, and at the boundaries between floral organ primordia. Surprisingly, overexpression of CUC1 was sufficient to induce adventitious shoots on the adaxial surface of cotyledons. Expression analyses in the overexpressor and in loss-of-function mutants suggest that CUC1 acts upstream of the SHOOT MERISTEMLESS gene.
Department of Botany, Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
S
S
Takada
K
K
Hibara
T
T
Ishida
M
M
Tasaka
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D001483:Base Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018744:DNA, Plant; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D017343:Genes, Plant; D018519:Meristem / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016296:Mutagenesis; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; C426007:CUC1 protein, Arabidopsis; C107294:CUC2 protein, Arabidopsis; D018744:DNA, Plant; D010940:Plant Proteins