A fused mitochondrial gene associated with cytoplasmic male sterility is developmentally regulated

Sequencing of an open reading frame associated with cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) in Petunia has revealed a gene fusion (the Pcf gene) containing the 5'-flanking and amino-terminal transmembrane segment of the ATP synthase proteolipid gene (atp9), parts of the cytochrome oxidase subunit II (coxII) coding region, and the carboxyl terminus and 3'-flanking region of an unidentified reading frame (urfS). The coxII region has several small deletions and tandem repeats that remove all of the segments coding for the residues involved in copper binding, but may possibly maintain the cytochrome c binding site. Normal atp9 and coxII genes and their transcripts are also present in the sterile cytoplasm. S1 nuclease protection studies identify fused gene transcripts only in CMS lines, with an increase in transcript amount in anthers relative to leaves.