Root Lectins and Rhizobia.
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Biomedical subjects
J. W. Kijne
Publications and source records attributed to J. W. Kijne.
Rapid Germination of a Barley Mutant Is Correlated with a Rapid Turnover of Abscisic Acid Outside the Embryo.
In our study of the role of abscisic acid (ABA) in controlling the germination of barley grains, we tested a barley mutant line with a gigantum appearance (Hordeum distichum cv Quantum) for an ABA-insensitive phenotype by assaying germination in the presence of 10-4 M ABA. Dissected embryos of the mutant germinated at least 10 h earlier than did those of the wild type. The half-maximal concentrations of ABA inhibitory for germination were determined to be 5 x 10-4 M for the mutant and 10-6 M for the wild type. Expression of an ABA-induced Rab gene was studied to determine ABA responsiveness. The ABA concentration required for a half-maximal induction of Rab gene expression was 4 x 10-6 M in isolated embryos of both the mutant and wild type. This result suggests that ABA signal transduction pathways were not affected in the mutant. When isolated embryos were allowed to imbibe in water, ABA was released from the mutant and wild-type embryos at the same rate. However, the free ABA level in the incubation medium of the mutant showed a much faster decrease than that of the wild type, as demonstrated by two independent ABA assay methods (high-performance liquid chromatography and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay). Our results suggest that turnover of ABA outside the embryo is a determining factor in the germination of barley seeds.
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Sugar-Binding Activity of Pea Lectin Expressed in White Clover Hairy Roots.
Introduction of the pea (Pisum sativum L.) lectin (PSL) gene into white clover (Trifolium repens L.) hairy roots facilitates nodulation by the nitrogen-fixing bacterium Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae, which normally nodulates pea and not white clover (C.L. Diaz, L.S. Melchers, P.J.J. Hooykaas, B.J.J. Lugtenberg, and J.W. Kijne [1989] Nature 338: 579-581). Here, we show that PSL is functionally expressed in transgenic white clover hairy roots transformed with the PSL gene. PSL could be isolated from these roots by affinity chromatography. Immunoanalysis of PSL showed the presence of polypeptides corresponding to the PSL precursor and its [beta] subunits. In addition, we developed a highly sensitive localization technique based on specific binding of a glycan moiety of rat IgE to PSL. Similar to the situation in pea roots, PSL appeared to be localized on the external cell surface of elongated epidermal cells and on the tips of emerging and growing root hairs of transgenic white clover hairy roots. PSL was not observed on normal white clover roots and on hairy roots without the PSL gene. These results show that (a) in transgenic white clover hairy roots, PSL is correctly processed and targeted to root cells susceptible to rhizobial infection, and (b) like in pea roots, PSL is surface bound with at least one of its two sugar-binding sites available for (rhizobial) ligands.
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