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Varied growth, biomass and cellulose content in tobacco expressing yeast-derived invertases

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Abstract

The effects of the expression of yeast-derived apoplastic (AI) and cytosolic (CI) invertases (EC 3.2.1.26) on biomass and structural carbohydrate accumulation in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Xanthi) were evaluated. Transgenic tobacco plants expressing AI or CI under the control of either a tandem repeat of the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus 35S promoter (2X35S), or a promoter that drives xylem-localized expression (Petroselinum crispum 4-coumarate:CoA ligase promoter; 4CL) were generated. Yeast-derived invertase transcript levels, invertase protein, enzyme activity, growth parameters as well as both structural and soluble carbohydrates of stem tissue of all transformed lines were quantified. Transgenic tobacco lines expressing invertase under the control of 4CL displayed severe growth retardation with both yeast-derived isogenes. Similarly, several transformed lines expressing either AI or CI regulated by the 2X35S promoter were also shorter than wild-type (WT) plants. Despite the decreases in height, some transformed lines had significant increases in biomass. One line (2X35S::AI-1) had a biomass/height increase of 88% and an increase in stem diameter of over 40%, while a second line (2X35S::CI-5) had a biomass/height increase of 21%. A separate line (2X35S::AI-2) had a 36% increase in cellulose content, while two others (4CL::AI-2 and 4CL::AI-3) displayed significant decreases in cellulose content. The observed phenotypes can be in part explained by the levels of foreign invertase present, subcellular localization and the carbohydrate status of the tissues.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Carl Douglas for his generous gift of the 4CL promoter. We also thank Margarita Gilbert, Heather Coleman and Jeffrey Keating for their technical assistance. Funding for this project was provided by NSERC, CellFor Inc. and CFS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Wood Science, University of British Columbia, 2424 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6T 1Z4

    Thomas Canam, Ji-Young Park, Ka Yun Yu & Shawn D. Mansfield

  2. Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks St., Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 3B2

    Malcolm M. Campbell

  3. National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation, 1111 S. Mason St., Fort Collins, CO, 80526, USA

    David D. Ellis

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  1. Thomas Canam
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  2. Ji-Young Park
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  4. Malcolm M. Campbell
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Correspondence to Shawn D. Mansfield.

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Canam, T., Park, JY., Yu, K.Y. et al. Varied growth, biomass and cellulose content in tobacco expressing yeast-derived invertases. Planta 224, 1315–1327 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-006-0313-1

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