Diverse roles and mechanisms of gene regulation by the Arabidopsis seed maturation master regulator FUS3 revealed by microarray analysis.
The FUSCA3 (FUS3) transcription factor is considered a master regulator of seed maturation because a wide range of seed maturation events are impaired in its defective mutant. To identify comprehensively genes under the control of FUS3, two types of microarray experiments were performed. First, transgenic plants in which FUS3 expression could be induced by the application of estrogen (ESTR) were used to identify any genes up-regulated in young seedlings of Arabidopsis in response to the ectopic expression of FUS3. Secondly, the transcriptomes of the fus3 mutant and wild-type developing seeds were compared. The combined results of these experiments identified genes under the relatively immediate and robust control of FUS3 during seed development. The analysis has extended the range of identified gene types under the control of FUS3. The genes positively controlled by FUS3 are not confined to previously known seed maturation-related genes and include those involved in the production of secondary metabolites, such as glucosinolates, phenylpropanoids and flavonoids, and those involved in primary metabolism, such as photosynthesis and fatty acid biosynthesis. Furthermore, several different patterns were identified in the manner of ectopic activation by FUS3 with respect to the induction kinetics and ABA requirement of downstream gene induction depending on the nature of developmental regulation, suggesting mechanistic diversity of gene regulation by FUS3.
Bioscience and Biotechnology Center, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa, Nagoya, 464-8601 Japan.
Akiko
A
Yamamoto
Yasuaki
Y
Kagaya
Haruko
H
Usui
Tokunori
T
Hobo
Shin
S
Takeda
Tsukaho
T
Hattori
D000040:Abscisic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D000483:Alleles; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D004967:Estrogens / Q000494:pharmacology; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D009154:Mutation; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018749:RNA, Plant; D036226:Seedlings / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012639:Seeds / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D015533:Transcriptional Activation; D015854:Up-Regulation
D004967:Estrogens; C502726:FUSCA3 protein, Arabidopsis; D018749:RNA, Plant; D014157:Transcription Factors; D000040:Abscisic Acid