Expressing creatine kinase in transgenic tobacco--a first step towards introducing an energy buffering system in plants.
Creatine kinase a key enzyme in cellular energy homeostasis of vertebrates offers the promise of engineering plants with enhanced stress tolerance. In order to provide plants with such an energy buffering system, tobacco was transformed with a cDNA, encoding the cytosolic brain-type isoform of chicken creatine kinase (BB-CK), the expression of which was under the control of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S (CaMV 35S) promoter. Transgenic tobacco plants were selected and suspension cultures generated. Both transgenic plants and suspension cultures were shown to stably express enzymatically active BB-CK in vitro and in vivo, and in most cases for three successive generations (T0-T2). Exogenously supplied creatine was shown to enter the plant cells and resulted in only a slight reduction in root growth at concentrations up to 10 mM. Furthermore, the BB-CK expressing tobacco plants and cell suspension cultures were able to convert creatine into phosphocreatine.
Farrés
Judith
J
Institute of Biotechnology, ETH-Zürich, Switzerland.
Holmberg
Niklas
N
Schlattner
Uwe
U
Bailey
James E
JE
Wallimann
Theo
T
Kallio
Pauli T
PT
D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002645:Chickens; D003401:Creatine / Q000378:metabolism; D003402:Creatine Kinase / Q000235:genetics*; D052276:Creatine Kinase, BB Form; D007527:Isoenzymes / Q000235:genetics*; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000502:physiology; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000235:genetics*; D014026:Nicotiana / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
D007527:Isoenzymes; D003402:Creatine Kinase; D052276:Creatine Kinase, BB Form; D003401:Creatine