title: Cloning and sequence analysis of the safflower betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase gene.
abstract: In response to salinity or drought stress, many plants accumulate glycine betaine, which is a regulator of osmosis. In plants, the last step in betaine synthesis is catalyzed by betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase (BADH), a nuclear-encoded chloroplastic enzyme. Based on the conserved oligo amino acid residues of the published BADH genes from other higher plant species, a cDNA sequence, designated CtBADH, was isolated from safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) using a polymerase chain reaction approach. The clones were 1.7 kb on average, and contained an open reading frame predicting a polypeptide of 503 amino acids with 84.5% identity to that of Helianthus annuus. The deduced amino acid sequence showed a decapeptide, Val-Thr-Leu-Geu-Leu-Gly-Gly-Lys-Ser-Pro and Cys, which is essential for proper functioning of BADH. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that CtBADH grouped with other dicotyledonous plant BADH genes, and subgrouped in the composite family. Prediction of secondary structure and subcellular localization suggested that the protein encoded by CtBADH contains 33 coils, 15 alpha helixes, and 21 beta strands, and most likely targets the chloroplast or mitochondria.
authors.affiliation: Agronomy College, Chengdu Campus, Sichuan Agricultural University, Wenjiang, China.
authors.forename: Y B
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Tropical Crops Genetic Resources Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, China.
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Guan
authors.affiliation: Agronomy College, Chengdu Campus, Sichuan Agricultural University, Wenjiang, China.
authors.forename: Y W
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Agronomy College, Chengdu Campus, Sichuan Agricultural University, Wenjiang, China.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Agronomy College, Chengdu Campus, Sichuan Agricultural University, Wenjiang, China ewuwei@sicau.edu.cn.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D050728:Betaine-Aldehyde Dehydrogenase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D031187:Carthamus tinctorius / Q000737:chemistry / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D017343:Genes, Plant; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D021381:Protein Transport
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D050728:Betaine-Aldehyde Dehydrogenase