title: Du1, encoding a novel Prp1 protein, regulates starch biosynthesis through affecting the splicing of Wxb pre-mRNAs in rice (Oryza sativa L.).
abstract: Starch is the major component of cereal grains. In rice, starch properties determine the eating and cooking quality. The dull endosperm of rice grains is a classical morphological and agronomical trait that has long been exploited for breeding and genetics study. To understand the molecular mechanism that regulates the starch biosynthesis in rice grains, we characterized a classic rice mutant dull endosperm1 (du1) and isolated Du1 through a map-based cloning approach. Du1, encoding a member of pre-mRNA processing (Prp1) family, is expressed mainly in panicles. Du1 specifically affects the splicing efficiency of Wx(b) and regulates starch biosynthesis by mediating the expression of starch biosynthesis genes. Analysis of du1wx shows that Du1 acts upstream of Wx(b). These results strongly suggest that Du1 may function as a regulator of the starch biosynthesis by affecting the splicing of Wx(b) and the expression of other genes involved in the rice starch biosynthetic pathways.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Dali
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: Meixian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Yonghong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xinfang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.forename: Jiayang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000688:Amylose / Q000378:metabolism; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D017343:Genes, Plant; D005816:Genetic Complementation Test; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012275:Oryza / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D012322:RNA Precursors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012326:RNA Splicing; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013213:Starch / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D012322:RNA Precursors; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D013213:Starch; D000688:Amylose