Transcriptional coactivator MBF1s from Arabidopsis predominantly localize in nucleolus

A high-efficiency transient expression system mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens in Spinacia oleracea leaves

BACKGROUND

Optimization of a highly efficient transient expression system is critical for the study of gene function, particularly in those plants in which stable transformation methods are not widely available. Agrobacterium tumefaciens‑mediated transient transformation is a simple and low-cost method that has been developed and applied to a wide variety of plant species. However, the transient expression in spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) is still not reported.

RESULTS

We developed a transient expression system in spinach leaves of the Sp75 and Sp73 varieties. Several factors influencing the transformation efficiency were optimized such as Agrobacterium strain, spinach seedling stage, leaf position, and the expression time after injection. Agrobacterium strain GV3101 (pSoup-p19) was more efficient than AGL1 in expressing recombinant protein in spinach leaves. In general, Sp75 leaves were more suitable than Sp73 leaves, regardless of grow stage. At four-leaf stage, higher intensity and efficiency of transient expression were observed in group 1 (G1) of Sp75 at 53 h after injection (HAI) and in G1 of Sp73 at 64 HAI. At six-leaf stage of Sp75, group 3 (G3) at 72 HAI were the most effective condition for transient expression. Using the optimized expression system, we detected the subcellular localization of a transcriptional co-activator SoMBF1c and a NADPH oxidase SoRbohF. We also detected the interaction of the protein kinase SoCRK10 and the NADPH oxidase SoRbohB.

CONCLUSION

This study established a method of highly efficient transient expression mediated by Agrobacterium in spinach leaves. The transient expression system will facilitate the analysis of gene function and lay a solid foundation for molecular design breeding of spinach.

PANTOTHENATE KINASE4, LOSS OF GDU2, and TRANSPOSON PROTEIN1 affect the canalization of tomato fruit metabolism

Most studies investigating quantitative traits focus on mean levels per genotype rather than the variation between different individuals of one genotype or the variation elicited by different environments. Consequently, the genes that govern this effect are not well understood. The concept, named canalization, which describes a lack of variation, is well known in the context of developmental processes but is poorly studied for quantitative traits such as metabolism. In this study, we selected 8 putative candidate genes from previously identified canalized metabolic quantitative trait loci and created genome-edited tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) mutants of these genes for experimental validation. Most lines showed wild-type morphology, except for an ARF-like protein mutant showing aberrant phenotypes in the form of scarred fruit cuticles. In greenhouse trials with different irrigation conditions, whole-plant traits showed a general increase of their level toward the more optimal irrigation conditions, whereas most metabolic traits showed an increase toward the other end of the gradient. Mutants of a PANTOTHENATE KINASE 4, the AIRP ubiquitin gene LOSS OF GDU2, and TRANSPOSON PROTEIN 1 grown under these conditions showed an overall improved plant performance. Additional effects, on both target and other metabolites in tomato fruits, regarding the mean level at specific conditions and, ergo, the cross-environment coefficient of variation, were observed. However, variation between individuals remained unaffected. In conclusion, this study supports the idea of distinct sets of genes regulating different types of variation.

The transcriptional coactivator CmMBF1c is required for waterlogging tolerance in Chrysanthemum morifolium

Waterlogging is one of the most serious abiotic stressors affecting Chrysanthemum morifolium during its lifespan. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the waterlogging tolerance of chrysanthemum remain unclear. In this study, we discovered that the transcriptional coactivator MULTIPROTEIN BRIDGING FACTOR 1c (CmMBF1c) was significantly induced by waterlogging stress in chrysanthemums. Promoter sequence analysis and transient dual-luciferase assay using chrysanthemum protoplasts showed that the waterlogging-tolerant cultivar 'Nannongxuefeng' carried more response elements involved in waterlogging and hypoxia stress compared with the waterlogging-sensitive cultivar 'Qinglu', conferring on 'Nannongxuefeng' a stronger hypoxia responsive activity and higher CmMBF1c expression under waterlogging conditions. Subcellular localization and transcriptional activity assays showed that CmMBF1c protein was localized to the nucleus and had no transcriptional activation activity. Overexpression of CmMBF1c in 'Qinglu' enhanced its waterlogging tolerance by promoting its reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging ability and maintaining low ROS levels. However, RNAi-mediated knockdown of CmMBF1c in cultivar 'Nannongxuefeng' resulted in the opposite tendency. Yeast two-hybrid screening and tobacco bimolecular fluorescence complementation assays revealed that CmHRE2, a pivotal regulator of hypoxia response, could interact with CmMBF1c. In summary, this study demonstrates that CmMBF1c improves chrysanthemum waterlogging tolerance by regulating its ROS signaling pathway and interacting with CmHRE2. These findings together offer, to our knowledge, new mechanistic insights into chrysanthemum waterlogging tolerance and provide a rational foundation for future research on the genetic improvement of horticultural crops for waterlogging stress tolerance.

Function Analysis of MBF1, a Factor Involved in the Response to Amino Acid Starvation and Virulence in Candida albicans

Candida albicans is a commensal of human mucosae, but also one of the most common fungal pathogens of humans. Systemic infections caused by this fungus, mostly affecting immunocompromised patients, are associated to fatality rates as high as 50% despite the available treatments. In order to improve this situation, it is necessary to fully understand how C. albicans is able to cause disease and how it copes with the host defenses. Our previous studies have revealed the importance of the C. albicans gene MBF1 in virulence and ability to colonize internal organs of mammalian and insect hosts. MBF1 encodes a putative transcriptional regulator, and as such it likely has an impact in the regulation of C. albicans gene expression during host infection. Here, recent advances in RNA-seq technologies were used to obtain a detailed analysis of the impact of MBF1 on C. albicans gene expression both in vitro and during infection. MBF1 was involved in the regulation of several genes with a role in glycolysis and response to stress, particularly to nutritional stress. We also investigated whether an interaction existed between MBF1 and GCN4, a master regulator of response to starvation, and found that both genes were needed for resistance to amino acid starvation, suggesting some level of interaction between the two. Reinforcing this idea, we showed that the proteins encoded by both genes could interact. Consistent with the role of MBF1 in virulence, we also established that GCN4 was necessary for virulence in the mouse model of systemic infection as well as in the Galleria mellonella infection model.

A Novel Multiprotein Bridging Factor 1-Like Protein Induces Cyst Wall Protein Gene Expression and Cyst Differentiation in Giardia lamblia

The capacity to synthesize a protective cyst wall is critical for infectivity of Giardia lamblia. It is of interest to know the mechanism of coordinated synthesis of three cyst wall proteins (CWPs) during encystation, a differentiation process. Multiprotein bridging factor 1 (MBF1) gene family is a group of transcription coactivators that bridge various transcription factors. They are involved in cell growth and differentiation in yeast and animals, or in stress response in fungi and plants. We asked whether Giardia has MBF1-like genes and whether their products influence gene expression. BLAST searches of the Giardia genome database identified one gene encoding a putative MBF1 protein with a helix-turn-helix domain. We found that it can specifically bind to the AT-rich initiator promoters of the encystation-induced cwp1-3 and myb2 genes. MBF1 localized to cell nuclei and cytoplasm with higher expression during encystation. In addition, overexpression of MBF1 induced cwp1-3 and myb2 gene expression and cyst generation. Mutation of the helixes in the helix-turn-helix domain reduced cwp1-3 and myb2 gene expression and cyst generation. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays confirmed the binding of MBF1 to the promoters with its binding sites in vivo. We also found that MBF1 can interact with E2F1, Pax2, WRKY, and Myb2 transcription factors that coordinately up-regulate the cwp genes during encystation. Using a CRISPR/Cas9 system for targeted disruption of mbf1 gene, we found a downregulation of cwp1-3 and myb2 genes and decrease of cyst generation. Our results suggest that MBF1 is functionally conserved and positively regulates Giardia cyst differentiation.

The plant MBF1 protein family: a bridge between stress and transcription

The Multiprotein Bridging Factor 1 (MBF1) proteins are transcription co-factors whose molecular function is to form a bridge between transcription factors and the basal machinery of transcription. MBF1s are present in most archaea and all eukaryotes, and numerous reports show that they are involved in developmental processes and in stress responses. In this review we summarize almost three decades of research on the plant MBF1 family, which has mainly focused on their role in abiotic stress responses, in particular the heat stress response. However, despite the amount of information available, there are still many questions that remain about how plant MBF1 genes, transcripts, and proteins respond to stress, and how they in turn modulate stress response transcriptional pathways.

Involvement of LeMDR, an ATP-binding cassette protein gene, in shikonin transport and biosynthesis in Lithospermum erythrorhizon

BACKGROUND

Shikonin is a naphthoquinone secondary metabolite with important medicinal value and is found in Lithospermum erythrorhizon. Considering the limited knowledge on the membrane transport mechanism of shikonin, this study investigated such molecular mechanism.

RESULTS

We successfully isolated an ATP-binding cassette protein gene, LeMDR, from L. erythrorhizon. LeMDR is predominantly expressed in L. erythrorhizon roots, where shikonin accumulated. Functional analysis of LeMDR by using the yeast cell expression system revealed that LeMDR is possibly involved in the shikonin efflux transport. The accumulation of shikonin is lower in yeast cells transformed with LeMDR-overexpressing vector than that with empty vector. The transgenic hairy roots of L. erythrorhizon overexpressing LeMDR (MDRO) significantly enhanced shikonin production, whereas the RNA interference of LeMDR (MDRi) displayed a reverse trend. Moreover, the mRNA expression level of LeMDR was up-regulated by treatment with shikonin and shikonin-positive regulators, methyl jasmonate and indole-3-acetic acid. There might be a relationship of mutual regulation between the expression level of LeMDR and shikonin biosynthesis.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings demonstrated the important role of LeMDR in transmembrane transport and biosynthesis of shikonin.

Overexpression of heat stress-responsive TaMBF1c, a wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Multiprotein Bridging Factor, confers heat tolerance in both yeast and rice

Previously, we found an ethylene-responsive transcriptional co-activator, which was significantly induced by heat stress (HS) in both thermo-sensitive and thermo-tolerant wheat. The corresponding ORF was isolated from wheat, and named TaMBF1c (Multiprotein Bridging Factor1c). The deduced amino acid sequence revealed the presence of conserved MBF1 and helix-turn-helix domains at the N- and C-terminus, respectively, which were highly similar to rice ERTCA (Ethylene Response Transcriptional Co-Activator) and Arabidopsis MBF1c. The promoter region of TaMBF1c contained three heat shock elements (HSEs) and other stress-responsive elements. There was no detectable mRNA of TaMBF1c under control conditions, but the transcript was rapidly and significantly induced by heat stress not only at the seedling stage, but also at the flowering stage. It was also slightly induced by drought and H2O2 stresses, as well as by application of the ethylene synthesis precursor ACC, but not, however, by circadian rhythm, salt, ABA or MeJA treatments. Under normal temperatures, TaMBF1c-eGFP protein showed predominant nuclear localization with some levels of cytosol localization in the bombarded onion epidermal cells, but it was mainly detected in the nucleus with almost no eGFP signals in cytosol when the bombarded onion cells were cultured under high temperature conditions. Overexpression of TaMBF1c in yeast imparted tolerance to heat stress compared to cells expressing the vector alone. Most importantly, transgenic rice plants engineered to overexpress TaMBF1c showed higher thermotolerance than control plants at both seedling and reproductive stages. In addition, transcript levels of six Heat Shock Protein and two Trehalose Phosphate Synthase genes were higher in TaMBF1c transgenic lines than in wild-type rice upon heat treatment. Collectively, the present data suggest that TaMBF1c plays a pivotal role in plant thermotolerance and holds promising possibilities for improving heat tolerance in crops.

A new link between stress response and nucleolar function during pollen development in Arabidopsis mediated by AtREN1 protein

Heat shock transcription factors (Hsfs) are involved in multiple aspects of stress response and plant growth. However, their role during male gametophyte development is largely unknown, although the generative phase is the most sensitive and critical period in the plant life cycle. Based on a wide screen of T-DNA mutant lines, we identified the atren1 mutation (restricted to nucleolus1) in early male gametophytic gene At1g77570, which has the closest homology to HSFA5 gene, the member of a heat shock transcription factor (HSF) gene family. The mutation causes multiple defects in male gametophyte development in both structure and function. Because the mutation disrupts an early acting (AtREN1) gene, these pollen phenotype abnormalities appear from bicellular pollen stage to pollen maturation. Moreover, the consequent progamic phase is compromised as well as documented by pollen germination defects and limited transmission via male gametophyte. In addition, atren1/- plants are defective in heat stress (HS) response and produce notably higher proportion of aberrant pollen grains. AtREN1 protein is targeted specifically to the nucleolus that, together with the increased size of the nucleolus in atren1 pollen, suggests that it is likely to be involved in ribosomal RNA biogenesis or other nucleolar functions.

Visualization of nuclear localization of transcription factors with cyan and green fluorescent proteins in the red alga Porphyra yezoensis

Transcription factors play a central role in expression of genomic information in all organisms. The objective of our study is to analyze the function of transcription factors in red algae. One way to analyze transcription factors in eukaryotic cells is to study their nuclear localization, as reported for land plants and green algae using fluorescent proteins. There is, however, no report documenting subcellular localization of transcription factors from red algae. In the present study, using the marine red alga Porphyra yezoensis, we confirmed for the first time successful expression of humanized fluorescent proteins (ZsGFP and ZsYFP) from a reef coral Zoanthus sp. and land plant-adapted sGFP(S65T) in gametophytic cells comparable to expression of AmCFP. Following molecular cloning and characterization of transcription factors DP-E2F-like 1 (PyDEL1), transcription elongation factor 1 (PyElf1) and multiprotein bridging factor 1 (PyMBF1), we then demonstrated that ZsGFP and AmCFP can be used to visualize nuclear localization of PyElf1 and PyMBF1. This is the first report to perform visualization of subcellular localization of transcription factors as genome-encoded proteins in red algae.

Role of multiprotein bridging factor 1 in archaea: bridging the domains?

MBF1 (multiprotein bridging factor 1) is a highly conserved protein in archaea and eukaryotes. It was originally identified as a mediator of the eukaryotic transcription regulator BmFTZ-F1 (Bombyx mori regulator of fushi tarazu). MBF1 was demonstrated to enhance transcription by forming a bridge between distinct regulatory DNA-binding proteins and the TATA-box-binding protein. MBF1 consists of two parts: a C-terminal part that contains a highly conserved helix-turn-helix, and an N-terminal part that shows a clear divergence: in eukaryotes, it is a weakly conserved flexible domain, whereas, in archaea, it is a conserved zinc-ribbon domain. Although its function in archaea remains elusive, its function as a transcriptional co-activator has been deduced from thorough studies of several eukaryotic proteins, often indicating a role in stress response. In addition, MBF1 was found to influence translation fidelity in yeast. Genome context analysis of mbf1 in archaea revealed conserved clustering in the crenarchaeal branch together with genes generally involved in gene expression. It points to a role of MBF1 in transcription and/or translation. Experimental data are required to allow comparison of the archaeal MBF1 with its eukaryotic counterpart.

Abiotic and biotic stress tolerance in Arabidopsis overexpressing the multiprotein bridging factor 1a (MBF1a) transcriptional coactivator gene

We conducted a genetic yeast screen to identify salt tolerance (SAT) genes in a maize kernel cDNA library. During the screening, we identified a maize clone (SAT41) that seemed to confer elevated salt tolerance in comparison to control cells. SAT41 cDNA encodes a 16-kDa protein which is 82.4% identical to the Arabidopsis Multiprotein bridging factor 1a (MBF1a) transcriptional coactivator gene. To further examine salinity tolerance in Arabidopsis, we functionally characterized the MBF1a gene and found that dehydration as well as heightened glucose (Glc) induced MBF1a expression. Constitutive expression of MBF1a in Arabidopsis led to elevated salt tolerance in transgenic lines. Interestingly, plants overexpressing MBF1a exhibited insensitivity to Glc and resistance to fungal disease. Our results suggest that MBF1a is involved in stress tolerance as well as in ethylene and Glc signaling in Arabidopsis.

Differential gene regulation by selective association of transcriptional coactivators and bZIP DNA-binding domains

bZIP DNA-binding domains are targets for viral and cellular proteins that function as transcriptional coactivators. Here, we show that MBF1 and the related Chameau and HBO1 histone acetylases interact with distinct subgroups of bZIP proteins, whereas pX does not discriminate. Selectivity of Chameau and MBF1 for bZIP proteins is mediated by residues in the basic region that lie on the opposite surface from residues that contact DNA. Chameau functions as a specific coactivator for the AP-1 class of bZIP proteins via two arginine residues. A conserved glutamic acid/glutamine in the linker region underlies MBF1 specificity for a subgroup of bZIP factors. Chameau and MBF1 cannot synergistically coactivate transcription due to competitive interactions with the basic region, but either protein can synergistically coactivate with pX. Analysis of Jun derivatives that selectively interact with these coactivators reveals that MBF1 is crucial for the response to oxidative stress, whereas Chameau is important for the response to chemical and osmotic stress. Thus, the bZIP domain mediates selective interactions with coactivators and hence differential regulation of gene expression.

Fluorescence cross-correlation analyses of the molecular interaction between an Aux/IAA protein, MSG2/IAA19, and protein-protein interaction domains of auxin response factors of arabidopsis expressed in HeLa cells

Since auxin may elicit numerous developmental responses by the use of a combination of auxin response factors (ARFs) and their Aux/IAA repressors, it is important to determine the interaction between the two protein families in a quantitative manner. We transiently expressed the C-terminal protein-protein interaction domains (CTDs) of Arabidopsis ARFs, MP/ARF5 and NPH4/ARF7, and MSG2/IAA19, fused to fluorescent proteins in HeLa cells, and determined their molecular interactions with fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (FCCS). Almost complete association was found between MSG2 and MP-CTD and between MSG2 and NPH4-CTD. Approximately 20% association was found for MSG2 homodimers, NPH4-CTD homodimers and MP-CTD/NPH4-CTD heterodimers. Homotypic binding of MP-CTD may be weaker than that of MSG2. MSG2 was localized in cytoplasmic compartments in HeLa cells, whereas it was localized in the nuclei in plant cells. The fact that the heterotypic interaction between MSG2 and ARF-CTDs is stronger than each of the homotypic interactions appears to be the molecular basis for tight control of the transcriptional activity of ARFs by auxin. These results also show that FCCS is useful to examine protein-protein interactions especially for transcriptional regulators.