A gene encoding a phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C is induced by dehydration and salt stress in Arabidopsis thaliana

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 1995-04, Vol.92 (9), p.3903-3907
• Main Authors: Hirayama, Takashi, Ohto, Chikara, Mizoguchi, Tsuyoshi, Shinozaki, Kazuo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: adn; Amino Acid Sequence; Amino acids; Animals; Arabidopsis - enzymology; Arabidopsis - genetics; Arabidopsis - physiology; Arabidopsis thaliana; arn mensajero; arn messager; Base Sequence; Botany; Cellular biology; chemical composition; Cloning, Molecular; Complementary DNA; composicion quimica; composition chimique; Conserved Sequence; Dehydration; Deoxyribonucleic acid; deshidratacion; deshydratation; DNA; DNA Primers; DNA, Complementary; esterasas; esterase; esterases; estres; expresion genica; expression des genes; Flowers & plants; Freeze Drying; gene; gene expression; Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; genes; genetica; genetics; genetique; Hydrolysis; Hypertonic Solutions; Mammals; Messenger RNA; Molecular Sequence Data; nucleotide sequence; Nucleotide sequences; Phosphatidylinositol Diacylglycerol-Lyase; Phosphoinositide Phospholipase C; Phosphoric Diester Hydrolases - biosynthesis; Phosphoric Diester Hydrolases - genetics; Plant cells; Plants; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Proteins; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - biosynthesis; salinidad; salinite; salinity; secuencia nucleica; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; sequence nucleique; stress
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.92.9.3903

A cDNA corresponding to a putative phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) in the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana was cloned by use of the polymerase chain reaction. The cDNA, designated cAtPLC1, encodes a putative polypeptide of 561 aa with a calculated molecular mass of 64 kDa. The putative product includes so-called X and Y domains found in all PI-PLCs identified to date. In mammalian cells, there are three types of PI-PLC, PLC-beta, -gamma, and -delta. The overall structure of the putative AtPLC1 protein is most similar to that of PLC-alpha, although the AtPLC1 protein is much smaller than PLCs from other organisms. The recombinant AtPLC1 protein synthesized in Escherichia coli was able to hydrolyze phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate and this activity was completely dependent on Ca2+, as observed also for mammalian PI-PLCs. These results suggest that the AtPLC1 gene encodes a genuine PI-PLC of a higher plant. Northern blot analysis showed that the AtPLC1 gene is expressed at very low levels in the plant under normal conditions but is induced to a significant extent under various environmental stresses, such as dehydration, salinity, and low temperature. These observations suggest that AtPLC1 might be involved in the signal-transduction pathways of environmental stresses and that an increase in the level of AtPLC1 might amplify the signal, in a manner that contributes to the adaptation of the plant to these stresses.