title: A Bsister MADS-box gene involved in ovule and seed development in petunia and Arabidopsis.
abstract: MADS-domain transcription factors are essential for proper flower and seed development in angiosperms and their role in determination of floral organ identity can be described by the 'ABC model' of flower development. Recently, close relatives of the B-type genes were identified by phylogenetic studies, which are referred to as B(sister) (B(s)) genes. Here, we report the isolation and characterization of a MADS-box B(s) member from petunia, designated FBP24. An fbp24 knock-down line appeared to closely resemble the Arabidopsis B(s) mutant abs and a detailed and comparative analysis led to the conclusion that both FBP24 and ABS are necessary to determine the identity of the endothelial layer within the ovule. Protein interaction studies revealed the formation of higher-order complexes between B(s)-C-E and B(s)-D-E type MADS-box proteins, suggesting involvement of these specific complexes in determination of endothelium identity. However, although there are many similarities between the two genes and their products and functions, interestingly FBP24 cannot replace ABS in Arabidopsis. The results presented here demonstrate the importance of the comparative analysis of key regulatory genes in various model systems to fully understand all aspects of plant development.
authors.affiliation: Business Unit Bioscience, Plant Research International, 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: de Folter
authors.forename: Anna V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Shchennikova
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Franken
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Busscher
authors.forename: Ramamurthy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Baskar
authors.forename: Ueli
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Grossniklaus
authors.forename: Gerco C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Angenent
authors.forename: Richard G H
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Immink
mesh_terms: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D017343:Genes, Plant; D005816:Genetic Complementation Test; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D032306:Petunia / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development*; D012639:Seeds / Q000254:growth & development*
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D017931:DNA Primers; D018076:DNA, Complementary