Plant gene responses to frequency-specific sound signals

• Published in: Molecular breeding Vol. 21; no. 2; pp. 217 - 226
• Main Authors: Jeong, Mi-Jeong, Shim, Chang-Ki, Lee, Jin-Ohk, Kwon, Hawk-Bin, Kim, Yang-Han, Lee, Seong-Kon, Byun, Myeong-Ok, Park, Soo-Chul
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.02.2008; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Gene expression; Gene fusion; Genes; Life Sciences; Molecular biology; Oryza sativa; Plant biology; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Pathology; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Sound; Transgenic plants; Sound-induced genes; Frequency-specific expression; Aldolase; Rice
• ISSN: 1380-3743; 1572-9788
• DOI: 10.1007/s11032-007-9122-x

We identified a set of sound-responsive genes in plants using a sound-treated subtractive library and demonstrated sound regulation through mRNA expression analyses. Under both light and dark conditions, sound up-regulated expression of rbcS and ald . These are also light-responsive genes and these results suggest that sound could represent an alternative to light as a gene regulator. Ald mRNA expression increased significantly with treatment at 125 and 250 Hz, whereas levels decreased significantly with treatment at 50 Hz, indicating a frequency-specific response. To investigate whether the ald promoter responds to sound, we generated transgenic rice plants harboring a chimeric gene comprising a fusion of the ald promoter and GUS reporter. In three independent transgenic lines treated with 50 or 250 Hz for 4 h, GUS mRNA expression was up-regulated at 250 Hz, but down-regulated at 50 Hz. Thus, the sound-responsive mRNA expression pattern observed for the ald promoter correlated closely with that of ald , suggesting that the 1,506 bp ald promoter is sound-responsive. Therefore, we propose that in transgenic plants, specific frequencies of sound treatment could be used to regulate the expression of any gene fused to the ald promoter.