Abstract
Analysis of gene expression and enzyme activity in pooled tuber samples has previously indicated different developmental events occurring in a fixed sequential order during tuber development, starting with the up-regulation of starch synthesis then induction of protein storage followed by cell division and cell enlargement. In this report we analysed in vivo promoter activity of genes related to cell division and storage of reserves during tuber development in individual in vitro tubers, using the non invasive firefly luciferase reporter system. The average activity of the storage related promoters (AGPaseS and λPat21) was up-regulated prior to visible swelling, while the average activity of both cell cycle genes (cycB1;1 and CDC2a) showed an up-regulation after the onset of swelling. However, this novel system allowed expression analysis in individual tubers, which showed a variable up-regulation of both storage genes in relation to the moment of swelling, from 4 days before to 10 days after the onset of swelling. We conclude that during the first stages of tuber development, the moment of storage gene induction is independent from swelling. These results indicate that the developmental program of potato tubers does not consist of a fixed sequential order of events, but consists of independent developmental programs (storage and swelling), together resulting in the formation of a potato tuber. It is concluded that analysis of developmental programs by studying individuals may result in new insights, possibly obscured when using pooled samples.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bachem, C.W.B., van der Hoeven, R.S., De Bruijn, S.M., Vreugdenhil, D., Zabeau, M. and Visser, R.G.F. 1996. Visualization of differential gene expression using a novel method of RNA fingerprinting based on AFLP: analysis of gene expression during potato development. Plant J. 9: 745–753.
Bevan, M., Barker, R., Goldsbrough, A., Jarvis, M., Kavanagh, T. and Iturriaga, G. 1986. The structure and transcription start site of a major potato tuber protein gene. Nucl. Acids Res. 14: 4625–4638.
Bradburry, D. 1953. Division of starch-containing cells. Am. J. Bot. 40: 286–288.
Chengappa, S., Guilleroux, M., Phillips, W. and Shields, R. 1999. Transgenic tomato plants with decreased sucrose synthase are unaltered in starch and sugar accumulation in the fruit. Plant Mol. Biol. 40: 213–221.
Duncan, D.A. and Ewing, E.E. 1984. Initial anatomical changes associated with tuber formation on single-node potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cuttings. Ann. Bot. 53: 607–610.
Ewing, E.E. and Struik, P.C. 1992. Tuber formation in potato: induction, initiation, and growth. Hort. Rev. 14: 89–198.
Ferreira, P.C.G., Hemerley, A.S., Villarroel, R., Van Montagu, M. and Inzé, D. 1991. The Arabidopsis functional homolog of the P34cdc2 protein kinase. Plant Cell 3: 531–540.
Ferreira, P.C.G., Hemerly, A.S., Engler, J.D., Van Montagu, M., Engler, G. and Inzé, D. 1994. Developmental expression of the Arabidopsis cyclin gene cyc1At. Plant Cell 6: 1763–1774.
Grierson, C., Du, J.S., Zabala, M.D.T., Beggs, K., Smith, C., Holdsworth, M. and Bevan, M. 1994. Separate cis sequences and trans factors direct metabolic and developmental regulation of a potato tuber storage protein gene. Plant J. 5: 815–826.
Hemerly, A.S., Ferreira, P.C.G., De Almeida-Engler, J., Van Montagu, M., Engler, G. and Inzé, D. 1993. Cdc2a expression in Arabidopsis is linked with competence for cell division. Plant Cell 5: 1711–1723.
Hendriks, T., Vreugdenhil, D. and Stiekema, W.J. 1991. Patatin and four serine proteinase inhibitor genes are differentially expressed during potato tuber development. Plant Mol. Biol. 17: 385–394.
Jackson, S.D. 1999. Multiple signaling pathways control tuber induction in potato. Plant Physiol. 119: 1–8.
Kost, B., Schnorf, M., Potrykus, I. and Neuhaus, G. 1995. Nondestructive detection of firefly luciferase (LUC) activity in single plant cells using a cooled, slow-scan CCD camera and an optimized assay. Plant J. 8: 155–166.
Millar, A.J., Short, S.R., Chua, N.H. and Kay, S.A. 1992. A navel circadian phenotype based on firefly luciferase expression in transgenic plants. Plant Cell 4: 1075–1087.
Mironov, V., De Veylder, L., Van Montagu, M. and Inzé, D. 2000. Cyclin-dependent kinases and cell division in plants: the nexus. Plant Cell 11: 509–521.
Müller-Röber, B., Sonnewald, U. and Willmitzer, L. 1992. Inhibition of the ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase in transgenic potatoes leads to sugar-storing tubers and influences tuber formation and expression of tuber storage protein genes. EMBO J. 11: 1229–1238.
Müller-Röber, B., La-Cognata, U., Sonnewald, U. and Willmitzer, L. 1994. A truncated version of an ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase promoter from potato specifies guard cell-selective expression in transgenic plants. Plant Cell 6: 601–612.
Murashige, T. and Skoog, F. 1962. A revised medium for rapid growth and bio-assays with tobacco tissue cultures. Physiol. Plant. 15: 473–497.
Nguyen, V. T., Morange, M. and Bensaude, O. 1989. Protein denaturation during heat shock and related stress. J. Biol. Chem. 264: 10487–10492.
Niedz, R.P., Sussman, M.R. and Satterlee, J.S. 1995. Green fluorescent protein: an in vivo reporter of plant gene expression. Plant Cell Rep. 14: 403–406.
Ow, D.W., Wood, K.V., DeLuca, M., DeWey, J.R., Helinski, J.R. and Howell, S.H. 1986. Transient and stable expression of the firefly luciferase gene in plant cells and transgenic plants. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 84: 4870–4874.
Paiva, E., Lister, R.M. and Park, W.D. 1983. Induction and accumulation of major tuber proteins of potato in stems and petioles. Plant Physiol. 71: 161–168.
Pikaard, C.S., Brusca, J.S., Hannapel, D.J. and Park, W.D. 1987. The two classes of genes for the major potato tuber protein, patatin, are differentially expressed in tubers and roots. Nucl. Acids Res. 15: 1979–1994.
Rhode, A., Van Montagu, M., Inzé, D. and Boerjan, W. 1997. Factors regulating the expression of cell cycle genes in individual buds of Populus. Planta 201: 43–52.
Sanz, M.J., Mingo-Castel, A., van Lammeren, A.A.M. and Vreugdenhil, D. 1996. Changes in the microtubular cytoskeleton precede in vitro tuber formation in potato. Protoplasma 19: 46–54.
Sergeeva, L., de Bruijn, S.M., Koot-Gronsveld, E.A.M., Navratil, O. and Vreugdenhil, D. 2000. Tuber morphology and starch acumulation are independent phenomena: evidence from ipt-transgenic potato lines. Physiol. Plant. 108: 435–443.
Shaul, 0., Van Montagu, M. and Inzé, D. 1996. Regulation of cell division in Arabidopsis. Crit. Rev. Plant Sci. 15: 97–112.
Sherf, B.A. and Wood, K.V. 1994. Firefly luciferase engineered for improved genetic reporting. Promega Notes 49: 14–21.
Thompson, J.F., Hayes, L.S. and Lloyd, D.B. 1991. Modulation of firefly luciferase stability and impact on studies of gene regulation. Gene 103: 171–177.
van der Krol, A.R. and Chua, N.H. 1991. The basic domain of plant B-Zip proteins facilitates import of a reporter protein into plant nuclei. Plant Cell 3: 667–675.
van Leeuwen, W., Hagendoorn, M.J.M., Ruttink, T., van Poecke, R., van der Plas, L.H.W. and van der Krol, A.R. 2000. The use of the luciferase reporter system for in planta gene expression studies. Plant Mol. Biol. Rep. 18: 143a–143t.
van Leeuwen, W., Ruttink, T., Borst-Vrenssen, A.W.M., van der Plas, L.H.W. and van der Krol, A.R. 2001. Characterization of position-induced spatial and temporal regulation of transgene promoter activity in plants. J. Exp. Bot. 52: 949–959.
Visser, R.G.F., Vreugdenhil, D., Hendriks, T. and Jacobsen, E. 1994. Gene expression and carbohydrate content during stolon to tuber transition in potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.). Physiol. Plant. 90: 285–292.
Vreugdenhil, D. and Struik, P.C. 1989. An integrated view of the hormonal regulation of tuber formation in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.). Physiol. Plant. 75: 525–531.
Vreugdenhil, D., Xu, X., Jung, C.S., van Lammeren, A.A.M. and Ewing, E.E. 1999. Initial anatomical changes associated with tuber formation in single-node potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cuttings: a re-evaluation. Ann. Bot. 84: 675–680.
Wenzler, H.C., Mignery, G.A., Fisher, L.M. and Park, W.D. 1989. Analysis of a chimeric class-I patatin-GUS gene in transgenic potato plants: high-level expression in tubers and sucrose-inducible expression in cultured leaf and stem explants. Plant Mol. Biol. 12: 41–50.
Xu, X., Vreugdenhil, D. and van Lammeren, A.A.M. 1998. Cell division and cell enlargement during potato tuber formation. J. Exp. Bot. 49: 573–582.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Verhees, J., van der Krol, A.R., Vreugdenhil, D. et al. Characterization of gene expression during potato tuber development in individuals and populations using the luciferase reporter system. Plant Mol Biol 50, 653–665 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019922329081
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019922329081