Isolation and characterization of two cyclin-like cDNAs from Arabidopsis

Bacillus subtilis strain L1 promotes nitrate reductase activity in Arabidopsis and elicits enhanced growth performance in Arabidopsis, lettuce, and wheat

Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are a group of bacteria that promote plants growth in the rhizosphere. PGPRs are involved in various mechanisms that reinforce plant development. In this study, we screened for PGPRs that were effective in early growth of Arabidopsis thaliana when added to the media and one Bacillus subtilis strain L1 (Bs L1) was selected for further study. When Bs L1 was placed near the roots, seedlings showed notably stronger growth than that in the control, particularly in biomass and root hair. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed a high level of expression of the high affinity nitrate transporter gene, NRT2.1 in A. thaliana treated with Bs L1. After considering how Bs L1 could promote plant growth, we focused on nitrate, which is essential to plant growth. The nitrate content was lower in A. thaliana treated with Bs L1. However, examination of the activity of nitrate reductase revealed higher activity in plants treated with PGPR than in the control. Bs L1 had pronounced effects in representative crops (wheat and lettuce). These results suggest that Bs L1 promotes the assimilation and use of nitrate and plant growth.

Expression of cell cycle genes in shoot apical meristems

This article reviews cell proliferation in the shoot apical meristem. The morphology and function of the meristem depends on the positional control of cell growth and division. The review describes the historical framework of research in this area and then discusses the regulatory pathways that might link developmental controls to the core cell cycle machinery.

Interaction of a kinesin-like calmodulin-binding protein with a protein kinase

Kinesin-like calmodulin-binding protein (KCBP) is a novel member of the kinesin superfamily that is involved in cell division and trichome morphogenesis. KCBP is unique among all known kinesins in having a myosin tail homology-4 region in the N-terminal tail and a calmodulin-binding region following the motor domain. Calcium, through calmodulin, has been shown to negatively regulate the interaction of KCBP with microtubules. Here we have used the yeast two-hybrid system to identify the proteins that interact with the tail region of KCBP. A protein kinase (KCBP-interacting protein kinase (KIPK)) was found to interact specifically with the tail region of KCBP. KIPK is related to a group of protein kinases specific to plants that has an additional sequence between subdomains VII and VIII of the conserved C-terminal catalytic domain and an extensive N-terminal region. The catalytic domain alone of KIPK interacted weakly with the N-terminal KCBP protein but strongly with full-length KCBP, whereas the noncatalytic region did not interact with either protein. The interaction of KCBP with KIPK was confirmed using coprecipitation assays. Using bacterially expressed full-length and truncated proteins, we have shown that the catalytic domain is capable of phosphorylating itself. The association of KIPK with KCBP suggests regulation of KCBP or KCBP-associated proteins by phosphorylation and/or that KCBP is involved in targeting KIPK to its proper cellular location.

The plant cell cycle

Molecular controls of the plant cell cycle must integrate environmental signals within developmental contexts. Recent advances highlight the fundamental conservation of underlying cell cycle mechanisms between animals and plants, overlaid by a rich molecular and regulatory diversity that is specific to plant systems. Here we review plant cell cycle regulators and their control.

PLANT PROTEIN SERINE/THREONINE KINASES: Classification and Functions

The first plant protein kinase sequences were reported as recently as 1989, but by mid-1998 there were more than 500, including 175 in Arabidopsis thaliana alone. Despite this impressive pace of discovery, progress in understanding the detailed functions of protein kinases in plants has been slower. Protein serine/threonine kinases from A. thaliana can be divided into around a dozen major groups based on their sequence relationships. For each of these groups, studies on animal and fungal homologs are briefly reviewed, and direct studies of their physiological functions in plants are then discussed in more detail. The network of protein-serine/threonine kinases in plant cells appears to act as a "central processor unit" (cpu), accepting input information from receptors that sense environmental conditions, phytohormones, and other external factors, and converting it into appropriate outputs such as changes in metabolism, gene expression, and cell growth and division.

Cloning of the cDNA for glutamyl-tRNA synthetase from Arabidopsis thaliana

We cloned and characterized a full-length cDNA that encodes a glutamyl-tRNA synthetase (GluRSAt) from Arabidopsis. The GluRSAt is coded by a single gene. A transcript of about 2.3 kb hybridized with the cDNA. The deduced protein from the cDNA contained 719 amino acids with an estimated molecular mass of 81 kDa. Expression of the GluRSAt in E. coli resulted in a protein of the expected size. Comparison of the amino acid sequence GluRSAt to other glutamyl-tRNA synthetases showed strong sequence similarity to cytoplasmic GluRS proteins.