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Aspartic proteinase genes in the Brassicaceae Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus

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Abstract

Active aspartic proteinase is isolated from Brassica napus seeds and the peptide sequence is used to generate primers for PCR. We present here cDNA and genomic clones for aspartic proteinases from the closely related Brassicaceae Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus. The Arabidopsis cDNA represents a single gene, while Brassica has at least 4 genes. Like other plant aspartic proteases, the two Brassicaceae enzymes contain an extra protein domain of about 100 amino acids relative to the mammalian forms. The intron/exon arrangement in the Brassica genomic clone is significantly different from that in mammalian genes. As the proteinase is isolated from seeds, the same tissue where 2S albumins are processed, this implies expression of one of the aspartic proteinase genes there.

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Author notes

  1. Kathleen D'Hondt

    Present address: Laboratory for Monoclonal Antibodies, P.O. Box 8123, 6700, ES Wageningen, Netherlands

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plant Genetic Systems, J. Plateaustraat 22, B-9000, Gent, Belgium

    Kathleen D'Hondt & Enno Krebbers

  2. Laboratorium Fysiologische Chemie, Universiteit Gent, K. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000, Gent, Belgium

    Kathleen D'Hondt & Joel Vandekerckhove

  3. DuPont Agricultural Products, Experimental Station, 402 Wilmington, Delaware, 19880-0402, USA

    Sylvia Stack, Steve Gutteridge & Enno Krebbers

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, The State University of New York at Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, 13902-6000, USA

    Susannah Gal

Authors
  1. Kathleen D'Hondt
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  2. Sylvia Stack
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  3. Steve Gutteridge
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  4. Joel Vandekerckhove
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  5. Enno Krebbers
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  6. Susannah Gal
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D'Hondt, K., Stack, S., Gutteridge, S. et al. Aspartic proteinase genes in the Brassicaceae Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus. Plant Mol Biol 33, 187–192 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005794917200

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