title: AOX--a functional marker for efficient cell reprogramming under stress?
abstract: Functional markers for stress tolerance can be used in plant breeding to identify genotypes with high yield stabilities under various conditions. Thus, a good marker should show a strong correlation with favourable adaptive plant behaviour. The efficient reprogramming of target cells for yield determination is currently considered to be the most important step towards defining abiotic stress tolerance. In this Opinion article, we propose a role for the alternative oxidase (AOX) gene as a marker for genetic variation in cell reprogramming and yield stability. Evidence to support this idea comes from the metabolic role of alternative respiration under stress, the link between AOX activity and differential growth, and the single nucleotide polymorphism recently observed in AOX genes. We propose an innovative, interdisciplinary and global research strategy for future experimentation on AOX genes that could have an application in plant breeding.
authors.affiliation: EU Marie Curie Chair, ICAM, University of Evora, 7002-554 Evora, Portugal. eu_chair@uevora.pt
authors.forename: Birgit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Arnholdt-Schmitt
authors.forename: José H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: Dirce Fernandes
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: de Melo
mesh_terms: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005819:Genetic Markers; D033681:Mitochondrial Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics*; D010940:Plant Proteins; D000099188:Alternative Oxidase
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D005819:Genetic Markers; D033681:Mitochondrial Membrane Transport Proteins; D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins; D010088:Oxidoreductases; D010940:Plant Proteins; D000099188:Alternative Oxidase