A single amino-acid substitution at lysine 40 of an Arabidopsis thalianaα-tubulin causes extensive cell proliferation and expansion defects
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A single amino-acid substitution at lysine 40 of an Arabidopsis thalianaα-tubulin causes extensive cell proliferation and expansion defects. / Xiong, Xue; Xu, Deyang; Yang, Zhongnan; Huang, Hai; Cui, Xiaofeng.
In: Journal of Integrative Plant Biology, Vol. 55, No. 3, 2013, p. 209-220.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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T1 - A single amino-acid substitution at lysine 40 of an Arabidopsis thalianaα-tubulin causes extensive cell proliferation and expansion defects
AU - Xiong, Xue
AU - Xu, Deyang
AU - Yang, Zhongnan
AU - Huang, Hai
AU - Cui, Xiaofeng
N1 - © 2012 Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences.
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Microtubules are highly dynamic cytoskeletal polymers of α/β-tubulin heterodimers that undergo multiple post-translational modifications essential for various cellular functions in eukaryotes. The lysine 40 (K40) is largely conserved in α-tubulins in many eukaryote species, and the post-translational modification by acetylation at K40 is critical for neuronal development in vertebrates. However, the biological function of K40 of α-tubulins in plants remains unexplored. In this study, we show in Arabidopsis thaliana that constitutive expression of mutated forms of α-tubulin6 (TUA6) at K40 (TUA6(K40A) or TUA6(K40Q) ), in which K40 is replaced by alanine or glutamine, result in severely reduced plant size. Phenotypic characterization of the 35S:TUA6(K40A) transgenic plants revealed that both cell proliferation and cell expansion were affected. Cytological and biochemical analyses showed that the accumulation of α- and β-tubulin proteins was significantly reduced in the transgenic plants, and the cortical microtubule arrays were severely disrupted, indicating that K40 of the plant α-tubulin is critical in maintaining microtubule stability. We also constructed 35S:TUA6(K40R) transgenic plants in which K40 of the engineered TUA6 protein is replaced by an arginine, and found that the 35S:TUA6(K40R) plants were phenotypically indistinguishable from the wild-type. Since lysine and arginine are similar in biochemical nature but arginine cannot be acetylated, these results suggest a structural importance for K40 of α-tubulins in cell division and expansion.
AB - Microtubules are highly dynamic cytoskeletal polymers of α/β-tubulin heterodimers that undergo multiple post-translational modifications essential for various cellular functions in eukaryotes. The lysine 40 (K40) is largely conserved in α-tubulins in many eukaryote species, and the post-translational modification by acetylation at K40 is critical for neuronal development in vertebrates. However, the biological function of K40 of α-tubulins in plants remains unexplored. In this study, we show in Arabidopsis thaliana that constitutive expression of mutated forms of α-tubulin6 (TUA6) at K40 (TUA6(K40A) or TUA6(K40Q) ), in which K40 is replaced by alanine or glutamine, result in severely reduced plant size. Phenotypic characterization of the 35S:TUA6(K40A) transgenic plants revealed that both cell proliferation and cell expansion were affected. Cytological and biochemical analyses showed that the accumulation of α- and β-tubulin proteins was significantly reduced in the transgenic plants, and the cortical microtubule arrays were severely disrupted, indicating that K40 of the plant α-tubulin is critical in maintaining microtubule stability. We also constructed 35S:TUA6(K40R) transgenic plants in which K40 of the engineered TUA6 protein is replaced by an arginine, and found that the 35S:TUA6(K40R) plants were phenotypically indistinguishable from the wild-type. Since lysine and arginine are similar in biochemical nature but arginine cannot be acetylated, these results suggest a structural importance for K40 of α-tubulins in cell division and expansion.
KW - Arabidopsis
KW - Arabidopsis Proteins
KW - Cell Proliferation
KW - Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
KW - Microtubules
KW - Plants, Genetically Modified
KW - Tubulin
U2 - 10.1111/jipb.12003
DO - 10.1111/jipb.12003
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 23134282
VL - 55
SP - 209
EP - 220
JO - Journal of Integrative Plant Biology
JF - Journal of Integrative Plant Biology
SN - 1672-9072
IS - 3
ER -
ID: 146747995