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Isolation and characterization of novel MADS- box genes from Norway spruce, Picea abies L.

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Degree project in Biology, Master of science (2 years), 2010 Examensarbete i biologi 45 hp till masterexamen, 2010

Biology Education Centre and Physiological Botany, Uppsala University Supervisor: Karolina Tandre

Isolation and characterization of novel MADS- box genes from Norway spruce, Picea abies L.

Norway spruce (Picea abies) is a conifer which belongs to the gymnosperm Pinaceae family. The scientific name Picea abies was given by the most famous Swedish botanist: Linné. In his classification system for plants, the species are classified based on the reproduction. In a majority of the angiosperm plants, the carpels and stamens are in the same flower and represent the female and male reproductive tissue respectively, this is called a hermaphroditic flower. The pollination needs a medium, for example, wind or insects. The insect pollination was an evolutionary success, because less pollen is produced by the plant and the fertilization rate is higher than for wind pollination. In nature, the phenomenon of adaptive radiation is quite common.

The adaptive radiation means that where species all deriving from a common ancestor have over time successfully adapted to their environment via natural selection and then have different phenotypes. However, the adaptive radiation is not caused by homeotic gene mutations. The homeotic genes play a crucial role in organisms, and are involved in developmental patterns and sequences.

On the other hand, the reproductive organs of conifers are unisexual cones. There are no carpels formed in female cones but a special structure called scale is formed onto which the ovules are borne. Female and male cones are separated from each other but in the same tree. Female cones bear the ovules and male cones produce the pollen.

The expression and function of the homeotic gene AGAMOUS (AG) from the angiosperm model plant Arabidopsis thaliana is well studied. The AG protein is a MADS-domain transcription factor that it is responsible for carpel and stamen formation. A transcription factor is a protein that contains one or more DNA-binding domains. Functioning alone or with other proteins in a complex, the transcription factor protein binds to specific DNA sequences and regulates expression of nearby genes. So far, several gene families encoding transcription factors have been found.

To study the manners of developmental control in gymnosperms, a search for novel transcription-factor encoding genes in conifers is presented.

Does gene family complexity reflect complexity in morphology of reproductive organs? Our cloning and characterization experiments of novel MADS-box genes from spruce indicate that gene family complexity indeed is larger than earlier believed.

Moreover, some of the novel genes are not active in reproductive organs but in root.

Shuoran Liu

References

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