title: Characterization of a MYBR2R3 gene from black spruce (Picea mariana) that shares functional conservation with maize C1.
abstract: PCR amplification with degenerate primers targeted to highly conserved amino acid motifs within the MYB domain was used to demonstrate that black spruce (Picea mariana) possesses a diverse MYB gene family. Amino acid sequence comparisons revealed three broad MYB subfamilies, one of which shares extensive similarity with maize C1, a central regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis. A cDNA clone encoding a MYBR2R3 protein from P. mariana with high levels of sequence homology to maize C1 was shown to transactivate the Bz2 promoter in combination with maize R in embryonal tissues of both black spruce and larch. Functional dependence on the maize R protein, and the presence of a conserved C-terminal GIDPxTH motif, support the conservation of MYBR2R3 function in conifers, and demonstrate that the basic components of MYBR2R3-dependent transcriptional regulation have been conserved between angiosperms and gymnosperms.
authors.affiliation: Laurentian Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service, Natural Resources Canada, 1055 du P.E.P.S., P.O. Box 3800, Sainte-Foy, Quebec, G1V 4C7, Canada.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Charest
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Devantier
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Rutledge
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family; D010802:Phylogeny; D028222:Picea / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012639:Seeds; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014197:Trees / Q000235:genetics; D003313:Zea mays / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins