Abstract
BackgroundSomatic embryogenesis (SE) is the process in which somatic embryos develop from somatic tissue in vitro on medium in most cases supplemented with growth regulators. Knowledge of genes involved in regulation of initiation and of development of somatic embryos is crucial for application of SE as an efficient tool to enable genetic improvement across genotypes by clonal propagation.ResultsCurrent work presents in silico identification of putative homologues of central regulators of SE initiation and development in conifers focusing mainly on key transcription factors (TFs) e.g. BBM, LEC1, LEC1-LIKE, LEC2 and FUSCA3, based on sequence similarity using BLASTP. Protein sequences of well-characterised candidates genes from Arabidopsis thaliana were used to query the databases (Gymno PLAZA, Congenie, GenBank) including whole-genome sequence data from two representative species from the genus Picea (Picea abies) and Pinus (Pinus taeda), for finding putative conifer homologues, using BLASTP. Identification of corresponding conifer proteins was further confirmed by domain search (Conserved Domain Database), alignment (MUSCLE) with respective sequences of Arabidopsis thaliana proteins and phylogenetic analysis (Phylogeny.fr).ConclusionsThis in silico analysis suggests absence of LEC2 in Picea abies and Pinus taeda, the conifer species whose genomes have been sequenced. Based on available sequence data to date, LEC2 was also not detected in the other conifer species included in the study. LEC2 is one of the key TFs associated with initiation and regulation of the process of SE in angiosperms. Potential alternative mechanisms that might be functional in conifers to compensate the lack of LEC2 are discussed.
Highlights
Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is the process in which somatic embryos develop from somatic tissue in vitro on medium in most cases supplemented with growth regulators
Based on available sequence data to date, LEAFY COTYLEDON 2 (LEC2) was not detected in the other conifer species included in the study
All homologues from conifer species for a specific candidate gene were aligned along with the corresponding gene from A. thaliana and the characteristic motifs/ domains of the respective genes in the conifer homologues are highlighted with different colours and named with the specific domain names based on the scientific convention as referred from the literature (Additional file 2.pdf - Additional file 11.pdf)
Summary
Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is the process in which somatic embryos develop from somatic tissue in vitro on medium in most cases supplemented with growth regulators. Knowledge of genes involved in regulation of initiation and of development of somatic embryos is crucial for application of SE as an efficient tool to enable genetic improvement across genotypes by clonal propagation. SE has gained importance for its use as a model system in basic studies related to molecular genetics and developmental biology but largely due its application for the large-scale vegetative propagation of plants of uniform quality with selected characters, for commercial purposes [2] This is of particular interest to the important part of the forest industry based on conifers where the majority of species with large commercial potential are difficult to propagate by traditional cloning methods. The motivation for the present study is to summarize information on conifer homologues for the most relevant key regulatory genes involved in SE in model species with the aim to provide a foundation for further detailed studies into functional regulation of the SE process in conifers
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
