Postembryonic seedling lethality in the sterol-deficient Arabidopsis cyp51A2 mutant is partially mediated by the composite action of ethylene and reactive oxygen species.
Seedling-lethal phenotypes of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) mutants that are defective in early steps in the sterol biosynthetic pathway are not rescued by the exogenous application of brassinosteroids. The detailed molecular and physiological mechanisms of seedling lethality have yet to be understood. Thus, to elucidate the underlying mechanism of lethality, we analyzed transcriptome and proteome profiles of the cyp51A2 mutant that is defective in sterol 14alpha-demethylation. Results revealed that the expression levels of genes involved in ethylene biosynthesis/signaling and detoxification of reactive oxygen species (ROS) increased in the mutant compared with the wild type and, thereby, that the endogenous ethylene level also increased in the mutant. Consistently, the seedling-lethal phenotype of the cyp51A2 mutant was partly attenuated by the inhibition of ethylene biosynthesis or signaling. However, photosynthesis-related genes including Rubisco large subunit, chlorophyll a/b-binding protein, and components of photosystems were transcriptionally and/or translationally down-regulated in the mutant, accompanied by the transformation of chloroplasts into gerontoplasts and a reduction in both chlorophyll contents and photosynthetic activity. These characteristics observed in the cyp51A2 mutant resemble those of leaf senescence. Nitroblue tetrazolium staining data revealed that the mutant was under oxidative stress due to the accumulation of ROS, a key factor controlling both programmed cell death and ethylene production. Our results suggest that changes in membrane sterol contents and composition in the cyp51A2 mutant trigger the generation of ROS and ethylene and eventually induce premature seedling senescence.
Kim
Ho Bang
HB
Natural Science Research Institute, Myongji University, Yongin 449-728, Korea.
Lee
Hyoungseok
H
Oh
Chang Jae
CJ
Lee
Hae-Youn
HY
Eum
Hyang Lan
HL
Kim
Hyung-Sae
HS
Hong
Yoon-Pyo
YP
Lee
Yi
Y
Choe
Sunghwa
S
An
Chung Sun
CS
Choi
Sang-Bong
SB
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005030:Ethylenes / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000502:physiology; D009154:Mutation; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism*; D036226:Seedlings / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013261:Sterols / Q000378:metabolism*
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D005030:Ethylenes; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D013261:Sterols; C036216:ethylene