NEEDLY, a Pinus radiata ortholog of FLORICAULA/LEAFY genes, expressed in both reproductive and vegetative meristems

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 95; no. 11; pp. 6537 - 6542
• Main Authors: Mouradov, A. (ForBio Research, Indooroopilly, QLD, Australia.), Glassick, T, Hamdorf, B, Murphy, L, Fowler, B, Marla, S, Teasdale, R.D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 26.05.1998; National Acad Sciences; National Academy of Sciences; The National Academy of Sciences
• Subjects: ADN; Amino Acid Sequence; AMINO ACID SEQUENCES; Angiosperms; APICAL MERISTEMS; Arabidopsis - genetics; ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA; ARN MENSAJERO; ARN MESSAGER; Biological Sciences; Botany; BOURGEON; Bracts; BUDS; CHEMICAL COMPOSITION; COMPLEMENTARY DNA; COMPLEMENTATION; COMPOSICION QUIMICA; COMPOSITION CHIMIQUE; DNA; EXPRESION GENICA; EXPRESSION DES GENES; FACTEUR DE TRANSCRIPTION; FACTORES DE TRANSCRIPCION; FLORACION; FLORAISON; FLORAL MERISTEMS; FLOWERING; flowering date; Flowers; Flowers & plants; GEN HOMEOTICO; GENBANK/U76757; GENE EXPRESSION; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; GENE HOMEOTIQUE; Genes; Genes, Plant; genetic complementation; Genetic vectors; GENETICA; GENETICS; GENETIQUE; HOMEOTIC GENES; Leaves; LONG SHOOT TERMINAL BUDS; MERISTEMAS; MERISTEMAS APICALES; MERISTEME; MERISTEME APICAL; MERISTEMS; MESSENGER RNA; MOLECULAR SEQUENCE DATA; MUTACION; MUTATION; NLY GENE; NUCLEOTIDE SEQUENCE; nucleotide sequences; Phenotypes; Phylogeny; PINUS RADIATA; Plant Proteins - genetics; Plants; Plants, Genetically Modified; SECUENCIA NUCLEOTIDICA; Sequence Alignment; SEQUENCE NUCLEOTIDIQUE; SHOOT MERISTEMS; STEMS; TALLO; TEMPS; TIEMPO; TIGE; TIME; TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS; YEMA (PLANTA)
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.95.11.6537

The LEAFY/FLORICAULA genes from Arabidopsis and Antirrhinum are necessary for normal flower development and play a key role in diverse angiosperm species. A homologue of these flower meristem-identity genes, NEEDLY (NLY), has been identified in Pinus radiata. Although the NLY protein shares extensive sequence similarity with its angiosperm counterparts, it is lacking the proline-rich and acidic motifs thought to function as transcriptional activation domains. NLY already is expressed during vegetative development at least 5 years before the transition to the reproductive phase. Expression of NLY in transgenic Arabidopsis promotes floral fate, demonstrating that, despite its sequence divergence, NLY encodes a functional ortholog of the FLORICAULA/LEAFY genes of angiosperms. Expression of the LFY::NLY transgene can largely complement the defects in flower development caused by a severe lfy allele.