Salinity inhibits post transcriptional processing of chloroplast 16S rRNA in shoot cultures of jojoba (Simmondsia chinesis).
Chloroplast metabolism is rapidly affected by salt stress. Photosynthesis is one of the first processes known to be affected by salinity. Here, we report that salinity inhibits chloroplast post-transcriptional RNA processing. A differentially expressed 680-bp cDNA, containing the 3' sequence of 16S rRNA, transcribed intergenic spacer, exon 1 and intron of tRNA(Ile), was isolated by differential display reverse transcriptase PCR from salt-grown jojoba (Simmondsia chinesis) shoot cultures. Northern blot analysis indicated that although most rRNA appears to be fully processed, partially processed chloroplast 16S rRNA accumulates in salt-grown cultures. Thus, salinity appears to decrease the processing of the rrn transcript. The possible effect of this decreased processing on physiological processes is, as yet, unknown.
Mizrahi-Aviv
Ela
E
Department of Life Sciences and Doris and Bertie Center for Bioenergetics in Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, 84105, Israel.
Mills
David
D
Benzioni
Aliza
A
Bar-Zvi
Dudy
D
D001483:Base Sequence; D002736:Chloroplasts / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018744:DNA, Plant; D019684:Magnoliopsida / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D018520:Plant Shoots / Q000378:metabolism; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational; D018749:RNA, Plant / Q000378:metabolism*; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000378:metabolism*; D012492:Salts; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques
D018744:DNA, Plant; D018749:RNA, Plant; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D012492:Salts