Discovery of single-nucleotide mutations in acetolactate synthase genes by Ecotilling

Abstract

TILLING (Targeting Induced Local Lesions IN Genomes) is a powerful reverse genetic technique that employs a mismatch-specific endonuclease to discover induced point mutations in genes of interest. The use of the TILLING technique to survey natural variation in genes is called Ecotilling. We report an adaptation of Ecotilling for rapid detection of single-nucleotide mutations in the acetolactate synthase (ALS) genes of sulfonylurea (SU)-resistant (R) Monochoria vaginalis (Pontederiaceae), a paddy weed, in Japan. Genomic DNA of a SU-R plant (target DNA) was mixed with the DNA of a SU-susceptible (S) plant (reference DNA). Ecotilling detected two nucleotide mutations in the ALS gene of SU-R M. vaginalis. These 2 mutations were confirmed by DNA sequencing. A single nucleotide mutation (C to A), in the codon CCT to CAT and another mutation (C to T), in the codon CCT to TCT were identified by sequencing. Both mutations result in the disruption of a Pro codon in the conserved Domain A region with the consequent substitution of a His residue in the first mutation and a Ser residue in the second. Substitution of the Pro residue in Domain A of the ALS gene has been reported to result in insensitivity to SUs in many weed biotypes. This study demonstrates that Ecotilling is a fast, reliable, economical method for detecting single-nucleotide mutations in genes arising from herbicide selection.