Structure of Anther-Specific Genes from Sunflower Encoding Proline-Rich Proteins

Abstract

ABSTRACTThree anther-specific cDNAs, which hail been isolated by differential screening of a cDNA library of a sunflower inflorescence at an thesis, have been studied and were found to code for proline-rich proteins containing an N-terminal signal peptide (which in two of the proteins is highly conserved). These structural features suggest that the three proteins are cell wall proteins. The mRNAs corresponding to the three cDNAs are found exclusively in the cell laver surrounding the pollen sacs. Genomic clones coding for two of these proteins have been isolated and studied. They are split by a single intron at the same position and appear to have originated by an exon shuffling event involving a part of the coiling region the region encoding the signal peptide), a part of the intron, as well as regulatory sequences in the upstream region.