Regulation of methylbenzoate emission after pollination in snapdragon and petunia flowers.
The molecular mechanisms responsible for postpollination changes in floral scent emission were investigated in snapdragon cv Maryland True Pink and petunia cv Mitchell flowers using a volatile ester, methylbenzoate, one of the major scent compounds emitted by these flowers, as an example. In both species, a 70 to 75% pollination-induced decrease in methylbenzoate emission begins only after pollen tubes reach the ovary, a process that takes between 35 and 40 h in snapdragon and approximately 32 h in petunia. This postpollination decrease in emission is not triggered by pollen deposition on the stigma. Petunia and snapdragon both synthesize methylbenzoate from benzoic acid and S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM); however, they use different mechanisms to downregulate its production after pollination. In petunia, expression of the gene responsible for methylbenzoate synthesis is suppressed by ethylene. In snapdragon, the decrease in methylbenzoate emission is the result of a decrease in both S-adenosyl-l-methionine:benzoic acid carboxyl methyltransferase (BAMT) activity and the ratio of SAM to S-adenosyl-l-homocysteine ("methylation index") after pollination, although the BAMT gene also is sensitive to ethylene.
Negre
Florence
F
Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA.
Kish
Christine M
CM
Boatright
Jennifer
J
Underwood
Beverly
B
Shibuya
Kenichi
K
Wagner
Conrad
C
Clark
David G
DG
Dudareva
Natalia
N
D032161:Antirrhinum / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D001565:Benzoates / Q000378:metabolism*; D019817:Benzoic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D005030:Ethylenes / Q000494:pharmacology; D035264:Flowers / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000187:drug effects; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic / Q000187:drug effects; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D008745:Methylation; D008780:Methyltransferases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009812:Odorants / Q000032:analysis; D032306:Petunia / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology; D012436:S-Adenosylmethionine / Q000378:metabolism; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D001565:Benzoates; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D005030:Ethylenes; D010940:Plant Proteins; C044605:methyl benzoate; D012436:S-Adenosylmethionine; D019817:Benzoic Acid; C036216:ethylene; C412548:BAMT protein, Antirrhinum majus; D008780:Methyltransferases