Effect of 5′-deletion ofArabidopsis profilin2 promoter on its vascular specific expression

Abstract

Based on the published sequence of profilin2 promoter ofArabidopsis thaliana, a full-length promoter (1667 bp) was amplified by PCR. The 5′-end deletion fragments with length of 1380, 1153, 969 and 597 bp were then fused withgus (uidA) gene respectively. Constructed plant expression vectors were individually transferred intoKalanchoe laciniata and transgenic plants regenerated. GUS histochemical assay confirmed that the full-length promoter Pfn1.7 was vascular-specific. Deletion assays showed that profilin2 promoter could be divided into three parts. Deletion of fragment 1 (−1667—−1380 bp) resulted in constitutive expression, suggesting that element(s) responsible for vascular-specific expression might exist in this region. Fragment 2 located at −1153—−597 bp strongly inhibitedgus gene expression. Fragment 3 (−597—−1 bp) is considered as a basic domain of profilin2.