Plant Physiol, March 2000, Vol. 122, pp. 695-704
A Novel Gibberellin-Induced Gene from Rice and Its Potential
Regulatory Role in Stem Growth1
Esther
van der Knaap,2
Jeong Hoe
Kim, and
Hans
Kende*
Michigan State University-Department of Energy Plant Research
Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan
48824-1312
Os-GRF1
(Oryza sativa-GROWTH-REGULATING FACTOR1) was identified
in a search for genes that are differentially expressed in the
intercalary meristem of deepwater rice (Oryza sativa L.)
internodes in response to gibberellin (GA). Os-GRF1 displays general
features of transcription factors, contains a functional nuclear
localization signal, and has three regions with similarities to
sequences in the database. One of these regions is similar to a protein
interaction domain of SWI2/SNF2, which is a subunit of a
chromatin-remodeling complex in yeast. The two other domains are novel
and found only in plant proteins of unknown function. To study its role
in plant growth, Os-GRF1 was expressed in Arabidopsis.
Stem elongation of transformed plants was severely inhibited, and
normal growth could not be recovered by the application of GA. Our
results indicate that Os-GRF1 belongs to a novel class of plant
proteins and may play a regulatory role in GA-induced stem elongation.
1
This work was supported by the National Science
Foundation (grant no. IBN9722915) and by the U.S. Department of Energy
(grant no. DE-FG02-91ER20021).
2
Present address: Department of Plant Breeding
and Biometry, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-1673.
*
Corresponding author; e-mail hkende{at}pilot.msu.edu; fax
517-353-9168.
© 2000 American Society of Plant Physiologists
