title: LEAFY COTYLEDON1, a key regulator of seed development, is expressed in vegetative and sexual propagules of Selaginella moellendorffii.
abstract: LEAFY COTYLEDON1 (LEC1) is a central regulator of seed development that plays a key role in controlling the maturation phase during which storage macromolecules accumulate and the embryo becomes tolerant of desiccation. We queried the genomes of seedless plants and identified a LEC1 homolog in the lycophyte, Selaginella moellendorffii, but not in the bryophyte, Physcomitrella patens. Genetic suppression experiments indicated that Selaginella LEC1 is the functional ortholog of Arabidopsis LEC1. Together, these results suggest that LEC1 originated at least 30 million years before the first seed plants appeared in the fossil record. The accumulation of Selaginella LEC1 RNA primarily in sexual and asexual reproductive structures suggests its involvement in cellular processes similar to those that occur during the maturation phase of seed development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, University of California, Davis, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Ryan C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Kirkbride
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: John J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Harada
mesh_terms: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D019068:Bryopsida / Q000235:genetics*; D022762:CCAAT-Enhancer-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D019295:Computational Biology; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012639:Seeds / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D032503:Selaginellaceae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D022762:CCAAT-Enhancer-Binding Proteins; D017931:DNA Primers; D018076:DNA, Complementary; C113191:LEC1 protein, Arabidopsis