Factors affecting the excision frequency of the maize transposable element Ds in Arabidopsis thaliana

A two-element transposon system based on the maize elements Ac and Ds is currently being used for insertional mutagenesis in Arabidopsis. With the aim of making this system as efficient as possible we have continued to analyse several parameters which affect Ds activity in Arabidopsis. The influence of genomic position on Ds excision has been analysed in five lines carrying Ds integrated in different genomic locations. Differences in both somatic and germinal excision were observed between the different lines. The relationship between somatic and germinal excision, the timing of excision events and environmental influences on transposition frequency have been investigated. The effect of varying dosage of the different elements was also analysed. A strong positive dosage effect was observed for the transposase source, but not for the Ds element. Analysis of germinal excision events showed that the majority of them occurred very late in the development of the plant, resulting in the majority of Ds transpositions being independent events.