Transcriptomic analyses reveal novel genes with sexually dimorphic expression in the zebrafish gonad and brain.

Background: Our knowledge on zebrafish reproduction is very limited. We generated a gonad-derived cDNA microarray from zebrafish and used it to analyze large-scale gene expression profiles in adult gonads and other organs.

Methodology/principal Findings: We have identified 116638 gonad-derived zebrafish expressed sequence tags (ESTs), 21% of which were isolated in our lab.

ORYZA SATIVA MYOSIN XI B controls pollen development by photoperiod-sensitive protein localizations.

Myosins are actin-based motor proteins responsible for various motility and signal transduction. Only a small set of myosin classes is present inplants, and little is known about their functions. Here we showed how a rice myosin gene controlled pollen development by sensing changed environmental factors.

The last 10 amino acid residues beyond the hydrophobic motif are critical for the catalytic competence and function of protein kinase Calpha.

The segment C-terminal to the hydrophobic motif at the V5 domain of protein kinase C (PKC) is the least conserved both in length and in amino acid identity among all PKC isozymes. By generating serial truncation mutants followed by biochemical and functional analyses, we show here that the very C terminus of PKCalpha is critical in conferring the full catalytic competence to the kinase and for transducing signals in cells. Deletion of one C-terminal amino acid residue caused the loss of approximately 60% of the catalytic activity of the mutant PKCalpha, whereas deletion of 10 C-terminal amino acid residues abrogated the catalytic activity of PKCalpha in immune complex kinase assays.

The Oryza sativa no pollen (Osnop) gene plays a role in male gametophyte development and most likely encodes a C2-GRAM domain-containing protein.

Phenotype screens of Ds insertional lines identified a male sterile Orysa sativa no pollen (Osnop) mutant with a pollen-less phenotype at the flowering stage. The mutant phenotype showed linkage to Ds insertion into Osnop gene region. This mutant contained a deletion of 65 kb chromosomal region at the site of Ds insertion containing 14 predicted genes.

Establishing an efficient Ac/Ds tagging system in rice: large-scale analysis of Ds flanking sequences.

A two-element Activator/Dissociation (Ac/Ds) gene trap system was successfully established in rice (Oryza sativa ssp. japonica cv. Nipponbare) to generate a collection of stable, unlinked and single-copy Ds transposants.