title: Ubiquitous expression of a gene encoding for uncoupling protein isolated from the thermogenic inflorescence of the dead horse arum Helicodiceros muscivorus.
abstract: Uncoupling proteins (UCPs) are a family of mitochondrial inner membrane proteins that have been implicated in heat production in mammalian cells. The inflorescences of several members of the arum lily family (Araceae) have also been shown to produce heat during flowering, but the involvement of UCP-mediated heat production in plants is not known. In this work a gene has been isolated termed HmUCPa that encodes for a putative uncoupling protein from Helicodiceros muscivorus, a highly thermogenic arum lily. RT-PCR analysis revealed that the expression of HmUCPa was ubiquitously found, both in thermogenic male florets and appendix, and the non-thermogenic female florets, spathe and club-shaped organs of the spadix. These results suggest that HmUCPa is not primarily involved in organ-specific heat production in H. muscivorus.
authors.affiliation: Cryobiosystem Research Center, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Iwate 020-8550, Japan. kikuito@iwate-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Kikukatsu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Yukie
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Abe
authors.forename: Sonya D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: Roger S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Seymour
mesh_terms: D031058:Arum / Q000235:genetics*; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D035264:Flowers / Q000235:genetics*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D006358:Hot Temperature; D007473:Ion Channels; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D000071256:Uncoupling Protein 1
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D007473:Ion Channels; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D000071256:Uncoupling Protein 1