title: The cell morphogenesis ANGUSTIFOLIA (AN) gene, a plant homolog of CtBP/BARS, is involved in abiotic and biotic stress response in higher plants.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  ANGUSTIFOLIA (AN), one of the CtBP family proteins, plays a major role in microtubule-dependent cell morphogenesis. Microarray analysis of mammalian AN homologs suggests that AN might function as a transcriptional activator and regulator of a wide range of genes. Genetic characterization of AN mutants suggests that AN might be involved in multiple biological processes beyond cell morphology regulation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using a reverse genetic approach, we provide in this paper the genetic, biochemical, and physiological evidence for ANGUSTIFOLIA's role in other new biological functions such as abiotic and biotic stress response in higher plants. The T-DNA knockout an-t1 mutant exhibits not only all the phenotypes of previously described angustifolia null mutants, but also copes better than wild type under dehydration and pathogen attack. The stress tolerance is accompanied by a steady-state modulation of cellular H(2)O(2) content, malondialdehyde (MDA) derived from cellular lipid peroxidation, and over-expression of stress responsive genes. Our results indicate that ANGUSTIFOLIA functions beyond cell morphology control through direct or indirect functional protein interaction networks mediating other biological processes such as drought and pathogen attacks.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results indicate that the ANGUSTIFOLIA gene participates in several biochemical pathways controlling cell morphogenesis, abiotic, and biotic stress responses in higher plants. Our results suggest that the in vivo function of plant ANGUSTIFOLIA has been overlooked and it needs to be further studied beyond microtubule-dependent cell morphogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Rutgers University, 315 Penn St, Camden, NJ 08102, USA.
authors.forename: Emma W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Gachomo
authors.forename: Jose C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Jimenez-Lopez
authors.forename: Sarah R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Anthony B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Cooksey
authors.forename: Oteri M
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Oghoghomeh
authors.forename: Nicholas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Lamine
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Baba-Moussa
authors.forename: Simeon O
authors.initials: SO
authors.lastname: Kotchoni
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D055864:Droughts; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D009024:Morphogenesis; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology; D044224:Pseudomonas syringae / Q000502:physiology; D012097:Repressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D013312:Stress, Physiological
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D012097:Repressor Proteins; C452846:DETORQEO protein, Arabidopsis