Proteomics insights into the basis of interspecific facilitation for maize (Zea mays) in faba bean (Vicia faba)/maize intercropping.

Unlabelled: Faba bean/maize intercropping significantly promotes maize productivity in phosphorus-deficient soils. This has been attributed to the below-ground interactions including rhizosphere effects and spatial effects. Nevertheless, the molecular mechanisms underlying these interactions have been scarcely investigated.

Comparative genetic analysis of Arabidopsis purple acid phosphatases AtPAP10, AtPAP12, and AtPAP26 provides new insights into their roles in plant adaptation to phosphate deprivation.

Induction and secretion of acid phosphatases (APases) is thought to be an adaptive mechanism that helps plants survive and grow under phosphate (Pi) deprivation. In Arabidopsis, there are 29 purple acid phosphatase (AtPAP) genes. To systematically investigate the roles of different AtPAPs, we first identified knockout or knock-down T-DNA lines for all 29 AtPAP genes.

The pleiotropic SEPALLATA-like gene OsMADS34 reveals that the 'empty glumes' of rice (Oryza sativa) spikelets are in fact rudimentary lemmas.

The single floret of the rice (Oryza sativa) spikelet is subtended by a pair of enigmatic organs usually termed 'empty glumes' or 'sterile lemmas'. As the identity of these organs remains essentially unknown, we refer to them as 'organs of unknown identity' (OUIs). Here we present a novel mutant of the rice SEPALLATA-like gene OsMADS34 which develops, in addition to disorganized branches and sterile seeds, elongated OUIs.

Analysis of the APETALA3- and PISTILLATA-like genes in Hedyosmum orientale (Chloranthaceae) provides insight into the evolution of the floral homeotic B-function in angiosperms.

Background And Aims: According to the floral ABC model, B-function genes appear to play a key role in the origin and diversification of the perianth during the evolution of angiosperms. The basal angiosperm Hedyosmum orientale (Chloranthaceae) has unisexual inflorescences associated with a seemingly primitive reproductive morphology and a reduced perianth structure in female flowers. The aim of this study was to investigate the nature of the perianth and the evolutionary state of the B-function programme in this species.

Functional conservation of MIKC*-Type MADS box genes in Arabidopsis and rice pollen maturation.

There are two groups of MADS intervening keratin-like and C-terminal (MIKC)-type MADS box genes, MIKC(C) type and MIKC* type. In seed plants, the MIKC(C) type shows considerable diversity, but the MIKC* type has only two subgroups, P- and S-clade, which show conserved expression in the gametophyte. To examine the functional conservation of MIKC*-type genes, we characterized all three rice (Oryza sativa) MIKC*-type genes.

Live and let die - the B(sister) MADS-box gene OsMADS29 controls the degeneration of cells in maternal tissues during seed development of rice (Oryza sativa).

B(sister) genes have been identified as the closest relatives of class B floral homeotic genes. Previous studies have shown that B(sister) genes from eudicots are involved in cell differentiation during ovule and seed development. However, the complete function of B(sister) genes in eudicots is masked by redundancy with other genes and little is known about the function of B(sister) genes in monocots, and about the evolution of B(sister) gene functions.

Characterization of Osmads6-5, a null allele, reveals that OsMADS6 is a critical regulator for early flower development in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

AGL6-clade genes are a subfamily of MADS-box genes and preferentially expressed in floral organs. OsMADS6 and OsMADS17 are two AGL6-like genes in rice. OsMADS17 has been shown to play a minor role in floral development and appears to result from a duplication of OsMADS6.

A mutation in the E2 subunit of the mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex in Arabidopsis reduces plant organ size and enhances the accumulation of amino acids and intermediate products of the TCA cycle.

The mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (mtPDC) plays a pivotal role in controlling the entry of carbon into the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle for energy production. This multi-enzyme complex consists of three components: E1, E2, and E3. In Arabidopsis, there are three genes, mtE2-1, mtE2-2, and mtE2-3, which encode the putative mtPDC E2 subunit but how each of them contributes to the total mtPDC activity remains unknown.

Functional conservation and diversification of class E floral homeotic genes in rice (Oryza sativa).

Mutant analyses in different eudicotyledonous flowering plants demonstrated that SEPALLATA-like MADS-box genes are required for the specification of sepals, petals, stamens and carpels, and for floral determinacy, thus defining class E floral organ identity genes. SEP-like genes encode MADS-domain transcription factors and constitute an angiosperm-specific gene clade whose members show remarkably different degrees of redundancy and sub-functionalization within eudicots. To better understand the evolutionary dynamics of SEP-like genes throughout the angiosperms we have knocked down SEP-like genes of rice (Oryza sativa), a distant relative of eudicots within the flowering plants.

TrMADS3, a new MADS-box gene, from a perennial species Taihangia rupestris (Rosaceae) is upregulated by cold and experiences seasonal fluctuation in expression level.

In many temperate perennial plants, floral transition is initiated in the first growth season but the development of flower is arrested during the winter to ensure production of mature flowers in the next spring. The molecular mechanisms of the process remain poorly understood with few well-characterized regulatory genes. Here, a MADS-box gene, named as TrMADS3, was isolated from the overwintering inflorescences of Taihangia rupestris, a temperate perennial in the rose family.

Two AGAMOUS-like MADS-box genes from Taihangia rupestris (Rosaceae) reveal independent trajectories in the evolution of class C and class D floral homeotic functions.

Duplicate genes may be retained by sub- and/or neofunctionalization through changes in gene expression and/or coding sequence, and therefore have the potential to contribute to the genetic robustness and diversification of an organism. In this study, two MADS-box genes were isolated from Taihangia rupestris, a core eudicot species belonging to the Rosaceae. Sequence and phylogenetic analyses revealed that they are clade members of the euAG and PLE lineages, respectively, and hence the two genes are named TrAG (Taihangia rupestris AGAMOUS) and TrSHP (Taihangia rupestris SHATTERPROOF).