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Imaging Spatial Reorganization of a MAPK Signaling Pathway Using the Tobacco Transient Expression System
Published on: March 20, 2016
Mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade in the signaling for polyamine biosynthesis in tobacco
Eun-Kyoung Jang1, Kwang-Hyun Min, Su-Hyun Kim
1Agricultural Plant Stress Research Center, Department of Plant Biotechnology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju 500-757, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Expression of NtNEK2(DD), a constitutively active mutant of NtMEK2, activates endogenous salicylic acid-induced protein kinase (SIPK) and wounding-induced protein kinase (WIPK), and leads to several stress/defense responses in tobacco. In this study, we used ACP (annealing control primer)-based differential display reverse transcription-PCR to isolate the downstream effectors mediated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade. The arginine decarboxylase gene (ADC), which is involved in plant putrescine biosynthesis, was one of nine differentially expressed genes. When compared with NtMEK2(KR) plants, NtMEK2(DD) transgenic plants exhibited a significant increase in ADC and ODC (ornithine decarboxylase) transcript levels, as well as in putrescine and its catabolite, gamma-aminobutyric acid, following SIPK/WIPK activation. Taken together, these results suggest that the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade is involved in regulating polyamine synthesis, especially putrescine synthesis, through transcriptional regulation of the biosynthetic genes in tobacco.
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