Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 19, 2026

Experimental Design for Laser Microdissection RNA-Seq: Lessons from an Analysis of Maize Leaf Development
Published on: March 5, 2017
The naked endosperm genes encode duplicate INDETERMINATE domain transcription factors required for maize endosperm
Gibum Yi1, Anjanasree K Neelakandan1, Bryan C Gontarek1
1Genetics, Development, and Cell Biology Department (G.Y., A.K.N., B.C.G., E.V., P.W.B.), Interdepartmental Plant Biology Program (G.Y., B.C.G., E.V., P.W.B.), and Agronomy Department (P.W.B.), Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011.
Abstract:
The aleurone is the outermost layer of cereal endosperm and functions to digest storage products accumulated in starchy endosperm cells as well as to confer important dietary health benefits. Whereas normal maize (Zea mays [Zm]) has a single aleurone layer, naked endosperm (nkd) mutants produce multiple outer cell layers of partially differentiated cells that show sporadic expression of aleurone identity markers such as a viviparous1 promoter-β-glucuronidase transgene. The 15:1 F2 segregation ratio suggested that two recessive genes were involved, and map-based cloning identified two homologous genes in duplicated regions of the genome. The nkd1 and nkd2 genes encode the INDETERMINATE1 domain (IDD) containing transcription factors ZmIDDveg9 and ZmIDD9 on chromosomes 2 and 10, respectively. Independent mutant alleles of nkd1 and nkd2, as well as nkd2-RNA interference lines in which both nkd genes were knocked down, also showed the nkd mutant phenotype, confirming the gene identities. In wild-type kernels, the nkd transcripts were most abundant around 11 to 16 d after pollination. The NKD proteins have putative nuclear localization signals, and green fluorescent protein fusion proteins showed nuclear localization. The mutant phenotype and gene identities suggest that NKD controls a gene regulatory network involved in aleurone cell fate specification and cell differentiation.
More Related Videos
06:11Author Spotlight: Improved Methods for Preparing Transverse Sections and Unrolled Whole Mounts of Maize Leaf Primordia for Fluorescence and Confocal Imaging
Published on: September 22, 2023
11:33Investigating Interactions Between Histone Modifying Enzymes and Transcription Factors in vivo by Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer
Published on: October 14, 2022
Related Concept Videos
Master Transcription Regulators
Maintenance of the ES Cell State
Transcription Factors
Combinatorial Gene Control
The expression of more than 30,000 genes is controlled by approximately 2000-3000 transcription factors. This is possible because a single transcription factor can recognize more than one regulatory sequence. The specificity in gene...
General Transcription Factors
RNA Polymerase II Accessory Proteins