Expression characterization of the herbicide tolerance gene Aryloxyalkanoate Dioxygenase (aad-1) controlled by seven combinations of regulatory elements.

Background: Availability of well characterized maize regulatory elements for gene expression in a variety of tissues and developmental stages provides effective alternatives for single and multigene transgenic concepts. We studied the expression of the herbicide tolerance gene aryloxyalkanoate dioxygenase (aad-1) driven by seven different regulatory element construct designs including the ubiquitin promoters of maize and rice, the actin promoters of melon and rice, three different versions of the Sugarcane Bacilliform Badnavirus promoters in association with other regulatory elements of gene expression.

Results: Gene expression of aad-1 was characterized at the transcript and protein levels in a collection of maize tissues and developmental stages.