Molecular and Bioinformatic Characterization of the Rice ROOT UV-B SENSITIVE Gene Family

ROOT UV-B SENSITIVE (RUS) genes exist in most eukaryotic organisms, and encode proteins that contain a DUF647 (domain of unknown function 647). Although the RUS genes are known to play essential roles in Arabidopsis seedling development, their precise functions are not well understood in other plants, including rice.

In this study, six OsRUS genes were cloned from rice root and leaf cDNA libraries. Our analysis showed that the sequence and open reading frame of cloned OsRUS3 cDNA differs from the predictions reported in the RAP-DB and RGAP databases. Public microarray, MPSS, and EST databases were used to analyze the expression profiles of the six OsRUS genes. Expression profiles for all OsRUS genes at different rice developmental stages were also analyzed by qRT-PCR. The signal peptide, GPI-anchor, transmembrane domain and subcellular localization of OsRUS proteins were predicted by various bioinformatics tools. Furthermore OsRUS1 was determined to be localized to the chloroplast by a protoplast experiment.

All the characterization of the OsRUS family generated from this study will provide a crucial foundation from which to further dissect how OsRUS genes function in rice development.