Abstract
The hy4 mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana(L.) Heynh. was previously shown to be impaired in the suppression of hypocotyl extension specifically by blue light. We report here that hy4 is altered in a range of blue-light-mediated extension-growth responses in various organs in seedlings and mature plants: it shows greater length of bolted stems, increased petiole extension and increased leaf width and area in blue light compared to the wild type. The hy4 mutant shows decreased cotyledon expansion in both red and blue light compared to the wild type. Anthocyanin formation and the expression of several flavonoid biosynthesis genes is stimulated by blue light in the wild type but to a much lower extent in hy4. The results indicate that the HY4 gene product is concerned with the perception of blue light in a range of extension-growth and gene-expression responses in Arabidopsis.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- DFR:
-
dihydroflavonol reductase
- CHS:
-
chalcone synthase
- CHI:
-
chalcone isomerase
References
Adamse, P., Kendrick, R.E., Koornneef, M. (1988) Photomorphogenetic mutants of higher plants. Photochem. Photobiol. 48, 833–841
Ahmad, M., Cashmore, A.R. (1993) HY4 gene of A. thaliana encodes a protein with characteristics of a blue-light photoreceptor. Nature 366, 162–166
Batschauer, A., Ehmann, B., Schäfer, E. (1991) Cloning and characterisation of a chalcone synthase gene from mustard and its light-dependent expression. Plant Mol. Biol. 16, 175–185
Blum, D.E., Neff, M.M., Van Volkenburgh, E. (1994) Light-stimulated cotyledon expansion in the blu3 and hy4 mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Physiol. 105, 1433–1436
Chomczynski, P., Sacchi, N. (1987) Single-step method of RNA isolation by acid guanidinium thiocyanate-phenol-chloroform extraction. Anal. Biochem. 162, 156–159
Chory, J. (1992) A genetic model for light-regulated seedling development in Arabidopsis. Development 115, 337–354
Chory, J., Peto, C.A., Ashbaugh, M., Saganich, R., Pratt, L., Ausubel, F. (1989) Different roles for phytochrome in etiolated and green plants deduced from characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana mutants. Plant Cell 1, 867–880
Church, G.M., Gilbert, W. (1984) Genomic sequencing. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 81, 1991–1995
Cosgrove, D.J. (1981) Rapid suppression of growth by blue light. Occurrence, time course, and general characteristics. Plant Physiol. 67, 584–590
Eskins, K. (1992) Light-quality effects on Arabidopsis development. Red, blue and far-red regulation of flowering and morphology. Physiol. Plant. 86, 439–444
Feinbaum, R.L., Ausubel, F.M. (1988) Transcriptional regulation of the Arabidopsis thaliana chalcone synthase gene. Mol. Cell. Biol. 8, 1985–1992
Feinbaum, R.L., Storz, G., Ausubel, F.M. (1991) High intensity and blue light regulated expression of chimeric chalcone synthase genes in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Mol. Gen. Genet. 226, 449–456
Frohnmeyer, H., Ehmann, B., Ketsch, T., Rocholl, M., Harter, K., Nagatani, A., Furuya, M., Batschauer, A., Hahlbrock, K., Schäfer, E. (1992) Differential usage of photoreceptors for chalcone synthase gene expression during plant development. Plant J. 2, 899–906
Gaba, V., Black, M. (1983) Photocontrol of hypocotyl elongation in de-etiolated Cucumis sativus L. Rapid responses to blue light. Photochem. Photobiol. 38, 469–472
Galland, P., Senger, H. (1991) Flavins as possible blue-light photoreceptors. In: Photoreceptor evolution and function, pp. 65–124, Holmes, G.H., ed. Academic Press, London
Gao, J., Kaufman, L.S. (1994) Blue-light regulation of the Arabidopsis thaliana Cab1 gene. Plant Physiol. 104, 1251–1257
Gerlach, W.L., Bedbrook, J.R. (1979) Cloning and characterisation of ribosomal RNA genes from wheat and barley. Nucleic Acids Res. 7, 1869–1885
Jenkins, G.I. (1991) Photoregulation of plant gene expression. In: Developmental regulation of plant gene expression, pp. 1–41, Grierson, D., ed. Blackie, Glasgow
Kaufman, L.S. (1993) Transduction of blue light signals. Plant Physiol. 102, 333–337
Koornneef, M., Rolff, E., Spruit, C.J.P. (1980) Genetic control of light-inhibited hypocotyl elongation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Z. Pflanzenphysiol. 100, 147–160
Kubasek, W.L., Shirley, B.W., McKillop, A., Goodman, H.M., Briggs, W., Ausubel, F.M. (1992) Regulation of flavonoid biosynthetic genes in germinating Arabidopsis seedlings. Plant Cell 4, 1229–1236
Liscum, E., Hangarter, R.P. (1991) Arabidopsis mutants lacking blue light-dependent inhibition of hypocotyl elongation. Plant Cell 3, 685–694
Liscum, E., Hangarter, R.P. (1993) Photomorphogenic mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana reveal activities of multiple photosensory systems during light-stimulated apical-hook opening. Planta 191, 214–221
Liscum, E., Hangarter, R.P. (1994) Mutational analysis of blue-light sensing in Arabidopsis. Plant Cell Environ. 17, 639–648
Mohr, H. (1994) Coaction between pigment systems. In: Photomorphogenesis in plants, 2nd edn., pp. 353–373, Kendrick, R.E., Kronenberg, G.H.M., eds. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht
Parks, B.M., Quail, P.H. (1993) hy8, a new class of Arabidopsis long hypocotyl mutants deficient in functional phytochrome A. Plant Cell 5, 39–48
Sambrook, J., Fritsch, E.F., Maniatis, T. (1989) Molecular cloning, a laboratory manual, 2nd edn., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, New York
Sawbridge, T.I., López-Juez, E., Knight, M.R., Jenkins, G.I. (1994) A blue-light photoreceptor mediates the fluence-rate-dependent expression of genes encoding the small subunit of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase in light-grown Phaseolus vulgaris primary leaves. Planta 192, 1–8
Silflow, C.D., Chisholm, R.L., Conner, T.W., Ranum, L.P.W. (1985) The two alpha-tubulin genes of Chlamydomonas reinhardi code for slightly different proteins. Mol. Cell. Biol. 5, 2389–2398
Short, T.W., Briggs, W.R. (1994) The transduction of blue light signals in higher plants. Annu. Rev. Plant Physiol. Plant Mol. Biol. 45, 143–171
Somers, D.E., Sharrock, R.A., Tepperman, J.M., Quail, P.H. (1991) The hy3 long hypocotyl mutant of Arabidopsis is deficient in phytochrome B. Plant Cell 3, 1263–1274
Trezzini, G.F., Horrichs, A., Somssich, I.E. (1993) Isolation of putative defense-related genes from Arabidopsis thaliana and expression in fungal elicitor-treated cells. Plant Mol. Biol. 21, 385–389
Valvekens, D., Van Montagu, M., Van Lijsebettens, M. (1988) Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana root expiants by using kanamycin selection. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 85, 5536–5540
Van Volkenburgh, E., Cleland, R.E., Watanabe, M. (1990) Light-stimulated cell expansion in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) leaves II. Quantity and quality of light required. Planta 182, 77–80
Warpeha, K.M.F., Kaufman, L.S. (1989) Blue-light regulation of epicotyl elongation in Pisum sativum. Plant Physiol. 89, 544–548
Whitelam, G.C., Johnson, E., Peng, J., Carol, P., Anderson, M.L., Cowl, J.S., Harberd, N.P. (1993) Phytochrome A null mutants of Arabidopsis display a wild-type phenotype in white light. Plant Cell 5, 757–768
Young, J.C., Liscum, E., Hangarter, R.P. (1992) Spectral-dependence of light-hypocotyl elongation in photomorphogenic mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana: evidence for a UV-A photosensor. Planta 188, 106–114
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
We thank the UK Agricultural and Food Research Council for supporting this work through the award of a research grant to G.I.J. We are grateful to Robert Brown for excellent technical assistance and Drs B.W. Shirley (Department of Biology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA), C.D. Silflow (Department of Genetics and Cell Biology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, USA) and I.E. Somssich (Department of Biochemistry, Max-Planck-Institut, Köln, Germany) for providing plasmid DNA.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jackson, J.A., Jenkins, G.I. Extension-growth responses and expression of flavonoid biosynthesis genes in the Arabidopsis hy4 mutant. Planta 197, 233–239 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00202642
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00202642