Fine mapping of BH1, a gene controlling lemma and palea development in rice

A new rice floral organ mutant bh1 , had a negative effect on grain yield. BH1 was fine mapped to 87.5 kb on chr2. A 55 kb chromosome segment was deleted in bh1. The cereal spikelet is enclosed by the lemma and palea. The lemma and palea of the floral mutant designated bh1, a selection from a T-DNA library generated from the rice cultivar Asominori, takes on an abnormal curve-shaped appearance only late in floral development, finally forming a beak-shaped hull. The mutation had a negative effect on thousand grain weight, seed set rate and germination rate. Genetic analysis indicated that the mutant phenotype was determined by a single recessive gene. Through map-based approach, BH1 gene was finally located to a ~87.5-kbp region on the long arm of chromosome 2. An analysis of the gene content of this region indicated that the mutation involves the loss of a 55-kbp stretch, harboring four open reading frames. Transcription profiling based on qRT-PCR revealed that the genes OsMADS1, OsMADS14, OsMADS15, OsMADS18, REP1, CFO1, and DL, all of which are also involved in lemma and palea development and identity specification, were down-regulated in the bh1 mutant. BH1 is therefore an important floral organ development gene.