Hydroxyproline-rich Glycoprotein Gene Research Articles

Identification of Cis-Regulatory Sequences Controlling Pollen-Specific Expression of Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Genes in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs) are a superfamily of plant cell wall structural proteins that function in various aspects of plant growth and development, including pollen tube growth. We have previously characterized protein sequence signatures for three family members in the HRGP superfamily: the hyperglycosylated arabinogalactan-proteins (AGPs), the moderately glycosylated extensins (EXTs), and the lightly glycosylated proline-rich proteins (PRPs). However, the mechanism of pollen-specific HRGP gene expression remains unexplored. To this end, we developed an integrative analysis pipeline combining RNA-seq gene expression and promoter sequences to identify cis-regulatory motifs responsible for pollen-specific expression of HRGP genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. Specifically, we mined the public RNA-seq datasets and identified 13 pollen-specific HRGP genes. Ensemble motif discovery identified 15 conserved promoter elements between A. thaliana and A. lyrata. Motif scanning revealed two pollen related transcription factors: GATA12 and brassinosteroid (BR) signaling pathway regulator BZR1. Finally, we performed a regression analysis and demonstrated that the 15 motifs provided a good model of HRGP gene expression in pollen (R = 0.61). In conclusion, we performed the first integrative analysis of cis-regulatory motifs in pollen-specific HRGP genes, revealing important insights into transcriptional regulation in pollen tissue.

Systemic protection against pearl millet downy mildew disease induced by cell wall glucan elicitors from Trichoderma hamatum UOM 13

Abstract The obligate oomycete Sclerospora graminicola (Sacc.) Schroet, is the incitant of downy mildew disease, which is the main constraint in pearl millet production worldwide. Different elicitors from Trichoderma hamatum UOM 13, e.g. mycelial extract and cell wall glucans, were assessed for their resistance elicitation efficiency and the possible underlying mechanisms. Both mycelial extract and cell wall glucans of T. hamatum UOM 13 positively influenced seed quality parameters of pearl millet, significantly enhanced seed germination and seedling vigor in comparison to the untreated control. Seed priming with cell wall glucan elicitors of T. hamatum UOM 13 suppressed downy mildew on susceptible pearl millet seedlings under greenhouse conditions by induction of systemic host resistance. Of the different elicitor delivery methods tested, transplant root dip was more effective than seed treatment and foliar spray. A combination of transplant root dip + seed treatment + foliar spray was significantly more effective than the single delivery methods. The induced resistance corresponded to up regulation of genes of important defense proteins upon pathogen inoculation. Transcripts of genes of defense enzymes glucanase, phenylalanine ammonia lyase, peroxidase and polyphenoloxidase were significantly increased due to the T. hamatum UOM elicitor effect. Expression of hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein genes, known to play an important role in cell wall cross-linking, were also up regulated in response to T. hamatum UOM cell wall glucan treatment. This study emphasizes the role of T. hamatum UOM as a potential elicitor of downy mildew resistance in pearl millet and presents novel insights into the involvement of important defense proteins mediating such as resistance trigger.

Self‐rescue of an EXTENSIN mutant reveals alternative gene expression programs and candidate proteins for new cell wall assembly in Arabidopsis

Plants encode a poorly understood superfamily of developmentally expressed cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs). One, EXTENSIN3 (EXT3) of the 168 putative HRGPs, is critical in the first steps of new wall assembly, demonstrated by broken and misplaced walls in its lethal homozygous mutant. Here we report the findings of phenotypic (not genotypic) revertants of the ext3 mutant and in-depth analysis including microarray and qRT-PCR (polymerase chain reaction). The aim was to identify EXT3 substitute(s), thus gaining a deeper understanding of new wall assembly. The data show differential expression in the ext3 mutant that included 61% (P≤0.05) of the HRGP genes, and ability to self-rescue by reprogramming expression. Independent revertants had reproducible expression networks, largely heritable over the four generations tested, with some genes displaying transgenerational drift towards wild-type expression levels. Genes for nine candidate regulatory proteins as well as eight candidate HRGP building materials and/or facilitators of new wall assembly or maintenance, in the (near) absence of EXT3 expression, were identified. Seven of the HRGP fit the current model of EXT function. In conclusion, the data on phenotype comparisons and on differential expression of the genes-of-focus provide strong evidence that different combinations of HRGPs regulated by alternative gene expression networks, can make functioning cell walls, resulting in (apparently) normal plant growth and development. More broadly, this has implications for interpreting the cause of any mutant phenotype, assigning gene function, and genetically modifying plants for utilitarian purposes.

Characterization of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein in pearl millet and its differential expression in response to the downy mildew pathogen Sclerospora graminicola

A monoclonal antibody, JIM 20, derived against an extensin type of hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) from pea, showed high affinity for HRGP in pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.]. Electrophoretic separation of Tris–SDS extracted proteins from suspension cells of pearl millet revealed a range of PM-HRGP polypeptides having a glycan epitope, which reacted with JIM 20. A high molecular mass band, probably an HRGP aggregate or polymer, and a few low molecular mass polypeptides were recognized by JIM 20 during Western blot analysis. Treatment of pearl millet suspension cells with hydrogen peroxide in the presence of an endogenous peroxidase resulted in insolubilization of HRGP polypeptides with molecular weights between 45 and 33 kDa. To investigate the gene coding for an extensin type of HRGP, a fosmid-based genomic library of pearl millet having a fourfold genome coverage was constructed. A partial sequence of 378 bp of an HRGP gene was obtained by PCR amplification of pearl millet DNA with a primer pair designed from the conserved regions of monocotyledon extensin type of HRGPs. Screening the genomic library using the homologous probe developed from the 378-bp PCR product resulted in the isolation of five fosmid clones. Restriction mapping of these fosmids resulted in an 11.8-kb region around an HRGP gene in pearl millet. The newly characterized gene, PM-HRGP, had all the characteristic features of a monocotyledon extensin type of HRGP. An intron at the 3′ untranslated region of the gene was identified by cDNA cloning. Differential expression of the PM-HRGP gene was observed during compatible and incompatible interactions of pearl millet with the downy mildew pathogen Sclerospora graminicola (Sacc) Schroet. Induced expression of the gene was observed only in case of an incompatible interaction.

담배에서 병원균에 반응하는 MAPK 신호전달체계에 의해 매개되는 방어 유전자들의 분리 및 특성화

NtMEK2, which is the tobacco MAPK kinase that is upstream of SIPK and WIPK, was identified using the dexamethasone (DEX)-inducible gain-of-function transgenic system. Expression of NtNEK2 DD , a constitutively active mutant of NtNEK2, leads to HR-like cell death, which indicates that the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade controls defense responses in tobacco. However, little is known about the downstream target substrates or defense-related genes that are regulated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade. In this study, ACP?based differential display RT-PCR was used to isolate the downstream effectors mediated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade in NtMEK2 DD transgenic plants. The results identified 6 novel differentially expressed genes (DEGs). These included pathogen induced protein 2-4 (pI2-4), monoterpene synthase 2 (MTS2), seven in absentia protein (SINA), cell death marker protein 1 (CDM1), hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) and unknown genes (DEG45). The induction of these genes was confirmed by RT-PCR of samples obtained from NtMEK2 DD plants. Additionally, when compared with other isolated DEGs, the pI2-4, CDM1 and HRGP genes were significantly up-regulated in response to treatment with salicylic acid and tobacco mosaic virus. Taken together, these results suggest that three novel DEGs were regulated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade involved in disease resistance in tobacco.

Between-species analysis of short-repeat modules in cell wall and sex-related hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins of Chlamydomonas.

Protein diversification is commonly driven by single amino acid changes at random positions followed by selection, but, in some cases, the structure of the gene itself favors the occurrence of particular kinds of mutations. Genes encoding hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs) in green organisms, key protein constituents of the cell wall, carry short-repeat modules that are posited to specify proline hydroxylation and/or glycosylation events. We show here, in a comparison of two closely related Chlamydomonas species-Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (CC-621) and Chlamydomonas incerta (CC-1870/3871)-that these modules are prone to misalignment and hence to both insertion/deletion and endoduplication events, and that the dynamics of the rearrangements are constrained by purifying selection on the repeat patterns themselves, considered either as helical or as longitudinal face modules. We suggest that such dynamics may contribute to evolutionary diversification in cell wall architecture and physiology. Two of the HRGP genes analyzed (SAG1 and SAD1) encode the mating-type plus and minus sexual agglutinins, displayed only by gametes, and we document that these have undergone far more extensive divergence than two HRGP genes (GP1 and VSP3) that encode cell wall components-an example of the rapid evolution that characterizes sex-related proteins in numerous lineages. Strikingly, the central regions of the agglutinins of both mating types have diverged completely, by selective endoduplication of repeated motifs, since the two species last shared a common ancestor, suggesting that these events may have participated in the speciation process.

Expression of a Soybean Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Gene Is Correlated with Maturation of Roots

A novel extensin gene has been identified in soybean (Glycine max L.) that encodes a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (SbHRGP3) with two different domains. In this study expression of SbHRGP3 was investigated during soybean root development. SbHRGP was expressed in roots of mature plants, as well as seedlings, and showed a distinct pattern of expression during root development. The expression of SbHRGP3 increased gradually during root development of seedlings and reached a maximum while the secondary roots were maturing. The maximum expression level was contributed mainly by the secondary roots rather than by the primary root. Furthermore, expression of SbHRGP3 was preferentially detected in the regions undergoing maturation of the primary and secondary roots. These results imply that the expression of SbHRGP3 is regulated in an organ- and development-specific manner and that in soybean SbHRGP3 expression may be required for root maturation, presumably for the cessation of root elongation. Wounding and sucrose in combination enhanced expression of SbHRGP3 in roots, whereas both wounding and sucrose were required for the expression of SbHRGP3 in leaves.

Effects of a triazolic fungicide on maize plant metabolism: modifications of transcript abundance in resistance-related pathways

Using a molecular approach, the effects of tetraconazole (TC), a triazolic inhibitor of P-450-based enzymes, has been investigated in maize, focusing on the resistance-related biosynthetic pathways involving one or more microsomial P-450 mono-oxigenases, putative secondary targets of the fungicide. Several observations were made. First, TC affected the phenylpropanoid-flavonoid biosynthesis, increasing the anthocyanin content and the mRNA abundance of the genes involved in the later steps of the pathway ( A1 and C2), while the expression of another gene, PAL, decreased in the roots. Second, the activity of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene involved in root cell wall structures was enhanced. Finally, maize seedlings acquired increased resistance to drought, which corresponded with modified levels of abscissic acid (ABA) and the overexpression of an ABA regulated gene. Taken together, these results suggest that TC act as a potential activator of plant defence-responses to both abiotic and biotic challenges and represents a powerful tool for elucidating the regulatory interconnections between different biosynthetic pathways.

Regulation of the maize HRGP gene expression by ethylene and wounding. mRNA accumulation and qualitative expression analysis of the promoter by microprojectile bombardment.

The expression of the maize gene coding for a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) has been studied by measuring the mRNA accumulation after wounding or ethylene treatment. RNA blot and in situ hybridization techniques have been used. The temporal and tissue-specific expression has been observed: the cells related to the vascular system show the more intense HRGP mRNA accumulation. Transcriptional constructions of the maize HRGP promoter have been tested on different maize tissues by microbombarding. A 582 bp promoter is able to direct the expression of the gus gene on calli and young leaves. Constructions having shorter promoter sequences lose this ability. The 582 bp construction retains the general specificity of expression observed for the HRGP gene.

A Wound-Inducible Member of the Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Gene Family in Sunflower

A Wound-Inducible Member of the Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Gene Family in Sunflower

Different mechanisms generating sequence variability are revealed in distinct regions of the hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene from maize and related species.

The sequences of the genes coding for a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein from two varieties of maize (Zea mays, Ac1503 and W22), a teosinte (Zea diploperennis) and sorghum (Sorghum vulgare) have been obtained and compared. Distinct patterns of variability have been observed along their sequences. The 500 bp region immediately upstream of the TATA box is highly conserved in the Zea species and contains stretches of sequences also found in the sorghum gene. Further upstream, significant rearrangements are observed, even between the two maize varieties. These observations allow definition of a 5' region, which is common to the four genes and is probably essential for their expression. The 3' end shows variability, mostly due to small duplications and single nucleotide substitutions. There is an intron present in this region showing a high degree of sequence conservation among the four genes analyzed. The coding region is the most divergent, but variability arises from duplications of fragments coding for similar protein blocks and from single nucleotide substitutions. These results indicate that a number of distinct mechanisms (probably point mutation, transposon insertion and excision, homologous recombination and unequal crossing-over) are active in the production of sequence variability in maize and related species. They are revealed in different parts of the gene, probably as the result of the different types of functional constraints acting on them, and of the specific nature of the sequence in each region.

The hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene from Oryza sativa.

The hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene from Oryza sativa.

Differential expression of a hydroxyproline-rich cell-wall protein gene in embryonic tissues of Zea mays L.

A hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) component of the maize cell wall was shown to be present in different organs of the plant by extraction of cell wall proteins and detection by Western blotting and immunocytochemistry. Antibodies raised against the protein or against synthetic peptides designed from the protein sequence immunoprecipitated a proline-rich polypeptide which was synthesized in-vitro from poly(A) (+) RNA extracted from different tissues of the plant and from the complete in-vitro-transcribed mRNA. A very low amount of the protein was found in immature embryos. In particular, the protein could not be detected in the scutellum either by Western blotting or by immunocytochemistry. In agreement with this finding, HRGP mRNA was barely detected in the scutellum, in contrast to its accumulation in the embryo axis. Our results indicate the existence of a unique cell wall structure in embryonic tissues from maize as well as a tissuespecific component of the control of maize HRGP gene expression, distinct to others already described such as cell division.

The sequence of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene from Sorghum vulgare

The sequence of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene from Sorghum vulgare

Tissue-Specific Expression of Cell Wall Proteins in Developing Soybean Tissues.

Cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs) and glycine-rich proteins (GRPs) were examined at the protein and at the mRNA levels in developing soybean tissues by tissue print immunoblots and RNA blots. In young soybean stems, HRGPs are expressed most heavily in cambium cells, in a few layers of cortex cells surrounding primary phloem, and in some parenchyma cells around the primary xylem, whereas GRPs are highly expressed in the primary xylem and also in the primary phloem. In older soybean stems, HRGP genes are expressed exclusively in cambium cells and GRP genes are most heavily expressed in newly differentiated secondary xylem cells. Similar expression patterns of HRGPs and of GRPs were found in soybean petioles, seedcoats, and young hypocotyls, and also in bean petioles and stems. HRGPs and GRPs become insolubilized in soybean stem cell walls. Three major HRGP mRNAs and two major GRP mRNAs accumulate in soybean stems. Soluble HRGPs are abundant in young hypocotyl apical regions and young root apical regions, whereas in hypocotyl and root mature regions, soluble HRGPs are found only in a few layers of cortex cells surrounding the vascular bundles. GRPs are specifically localized in primary xylem cell walls of young root. These results show that the gene expression of HRGPs and GRPs is developmentally regulated in a tissue-specific manner. In soybean tissues, HRGPs are most heavily expressed in meristematic cells and in some of those cells that may be under stress, whereas GRPs are expressed in all cells that are or are going to be lignified.

Expression of a maize cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene in early leaf and root vascular differentiation.

The spatial pattern of expression for a maize gene encoding a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) was determined by in situ hybridization. During normal development of roots and leaves, the expression of the gene was transient and particularly high in regions initiating vascular elements and associated sclerenchyma. Its expression was also associated with the differentiation of vascular elements in a variety of other tissues. The gene encoded an HRGP that had been extracted from the cell walls of maize suspension culture cells and several other embryonic and post-embryonic tissues. The gene was present in one or two copies in different varieties of maize and in the related monocots teosinte and sorghum. A single gene was cloned from maize using a previously characterized HRGP cDNA clone [Stiefel et al. (1988). Plant Mol. Biol. 11, 483-493]. In addition to the coding sequences for the HRGP and an N-terminal signal sequence, the gene contained a single intron in the nontranslated 3' end.

Expression of a Maize Cell Wall Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Gene in Early Leaf and Root Vascular Differentiation

Expression of a Maize Cell Wall Hydroxyproline-Rich Glycoprotein Gene in Early Leaf and Root Vascular Differentiation

Specific expression of a novel cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene in lateral root initiation.

A gene encoding a novel cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGPnt3) was isolated from a genomic library of tobacco. The deduced protein (620 amino acids, Mr, 65,406) contains an amino-terminal hydrophobic signal peptide, is highly basic, and is rich in proline, although characteristic Ser-Pro4 repeats are found only beyond residue 204. At the carboxyl terminus, there is a 34-amino-acid unit repeated three times. Arginine is the predominant basic amino acid rather than lysine, as in other HRGPs. A second gene homologous to HRGPnt3 was revealed by Southern blot hybridization of tobacco genomic DNA. Northern blot hybridization identified a 1.9-kb transcript present at low levels in roots. To determine the underlying spatial pattern of expression, the HRGPnt3 promoter and the first 27 nucleotides of the open reading frame were fused to the beta-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene and transformed back into tobacco. Histochemical localization of GUS activity showed that the HRGPnt3 promoter was transiently induced in the pericycle and endodermis, specifically in the discrete, small subset of cells involved in the initiation of lateral roots. This pattern of expression, in cells destined to form the tip of the emerging lateral root, indicates that the encoded cell wall protein has a specialized structural function, possibly in the mechanical penetration of the cortex and epidermis of the main root, and that the HRGPnt3 promoter responds to an early morphogenetic signal for lateral root induction.

Differential regulation of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene family in wounded and infected plants.

We have characterized three different transcripts induced by fungal elicitor, wounding, or infection which encode apoproteins of cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins involved in plant defense against infection. The proteins encoded by two of these transcripts contain a proline-rich domain involving tandem repetition of the 16-amino-acid unit Tyr3-Lys-Ser-Pro4-Ser-Pro-Ser-Pro4. The third transcript encodes a protein with a proline-rich domain involving a variant of this 16-mer canonical repeat: Tyr3-His-Ser-Pro4-Lys-His-Ser-Pro4. Each transcript is encoded by a separate gene present at single or low copy number in the haploid genome. These transcripts exhibit markedly different patterns of accumulation in different stress conditions, indicating the operation of several distinct intercellular stress signal systems in higher plants.

Differential regulation of a hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein gene family in wounded and infected plants.

We have characterized three different transcripts induced by fungal elicitor, wounding, or infection which encode apoproteins of cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins involved in plant defense against infection. The proteins encoded by two of these transcripts contain a proline-rich domain involving tandem repetition of the 16-amino-acid unit Tyr3-Lys-Ser-Pro4-Ser-Pro-Ser-Pro4. The third transcript encodes a protein with a proline-rich domain involving a variant of this 16-mer canonical repeat: Tyr3-His-Ser-Pro4-Lys-His-Ser-Pro4. Each transcript is encoded by a separate gene present at single or low copy number in the haploid genome. These transcripts exhibit markedly different patterns of accumulation in different stress conditions, indicating the operation of several distinct intercellular stress signal systems in higher plants.