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Cloning and characterization of Somatic Embryogenesis Receptor Kinase I (EgSERK I) and its association with callus initiation in oil palm

  • Embryogenesis/Somatic Embryogenesis
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Abstract

The somatic embryogenesis receptor kinase (SERK) gene has been extensively studied in many plant species due to its role in conferring embryogenic competence to somatic cells. The oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) full-length SERK I (EgSERK I) cDNA was first isolated from cell suspension culture using RACE-PCR. Total length of EgSERK I cDNA was 2378 bp in length with a 5’UTR region (358 bp) longer than 3’UTR region (130 bp) and the ORF was 1890 bp (629aa). The deduced amino acid sequence of EgSERK I contained protein domains commonly present in reported SERK proteins, including the hallmark proline-rich region and C-terminal domains. EgSERK I was most highly expressed in leaf explants and also detected in all tested tissues, including vegetative tissues, reproductive tissues, embryogenic tissues, and non-embryogenic tissues, suggesting that it may have a broad role in plant growth and development. Expression of EgSERK I in leaf explant was upregulated by minimal auxin concentration at the initial 6 h of incubation in callus induction media. EgSERK I mRNA was detected in the adjacent cells of the vascular tissues in the midvein region of leaf explants which serves as the callus initiation point of callogenesis in oil palm. Collectively, our findings suggest that the EgSERK I gene is involved in the callus initiation stage of oil palm somatic embryogenesis by transducing the signal to switch on the dedifferentiation process, triggering cellular reprogramming to form callus.

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Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB). The authors thank the MPOB for providing tissue culture materials and to Dr. Yeap Wan Chin for her constructive suggestions and support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sime Darby Technology Centre Sdn Bhd, 1st floor, Block B, UPM-MTDC Technology Centre III, 43400, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Fong-Chin Lee

  2. Advanced Biotechnology and Breeding Centre, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, 6, Persiaran Institusi, Bandar Baru Bangi, 43000, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Meilina Ong-Abdullah & Siew-Eng Ooi

  3. Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Chai-Ling Ho & Parameswari Namasivayam

  4. Institute of Plantation Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Chai-Ling Ho

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  1. Fong-Chin Lee
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  3. Siew-Eng Ooi
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  4. Chai-Ling Ho
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Contributions

FCL, MOA, CLH, and PN designed and planned the experiments in this study. FCL carried out the experiments and wrote the manuscript. FCL and SEO developed the modified RNA in situ hybridization method. All authors discussed and were involved in results interpretation. All authors contributed to drafting and improving of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Parameswari Namasivayam.

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Lee, FC., Ong-Abdullah, M., Ooi, SE. et al. Cloning and characterization of Somatic Embryogenesis Receptor Kinase I (EgSERK I) and its association with callus initiation in oil palm. In Vitro Cell.Dev.Biol.-Plant 55, 153–164 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11627-018-9942-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11627-018-9942-x

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