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Polymorphism of the LEAFY Gene in Brassica Plants

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Abstract

The arabidopsis gene LEAFY controls the induction of flowering and maintenance of the floral meristem identity. By comparing the primary structure of LEAFY and its homologs in other Brassicaceae species and beyond this family, we singled out four clusters corresponding to three systematically remote families of angiosperms, Brassicaceae, Solanaceae, and Poaceae, and to gymnosperms. Both structural and functional distinctions of LEAFY homologs from their arabidopsis prototype expanded in the range Brassicaceae—Solanaceae—Poaceae. A LEAFY homolog from B. juncea cloned in our laboratory was used as a hybridization probe to analyze the restriction fragment length polymorphism in six Brassica species comprising diploid (AA, BB, and CC) and allotetraploid (AABB, AACC, and BBCC) genomes. In this way we recognized LEAFY fragments specific of genomes A, B, and C; in contrast, the variations of the length and structure of the LEAFY intron 2 were not genome-specific. LEAFY polymorphism in the Brassica accessions comprising genome B was related to their geographic origin and apparently to the adaptation to day length.

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Abbreviations

PCR:

polymerase chain reaction

RFLP:

restriction fragment length polymorphism

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. All-Russia Research Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology, Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Timiryazevskaya ul. 42, Moscow, 127550, Russia

    V. A. Vorobiev, V. V. Martynov, A. A. Pankin & E. E. Khavkin

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  1. V. A. Vorobiev
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  2. V. V. Martynov
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  3. A. A. Pankin
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  4. E. E. Khavkin
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__________

Translated from Fiziologiya Rastenii, Vol. 52, No. 6, 2005, pp. 919–925.

Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Vorobiev, Martynov, Pankin, Khavkin.

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Vorobiev, V.A., Martynov, V.V., Pankin, A.A. et al. Polymorphism of the LEAFY Gene in Brassica Plants. Russ J Plant Physiol 52, 814–820 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11183-005-0120-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11183-005-0120-8

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