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First published online August 7, 2003; 10.1104/pp.103.022442 Plant Physiology 133:73-83 (2003) © 2003 American Society of Plant Biologists Three Distinct Rice Cellulose Synthase Catalytic Subunit Genes Required for Cellulose Synthesis in the Secondary Wall1Institute of the Society for Techno-innovation of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0854, Japan (K.T., K.M., K.O.); and Molecular Genetics Department, National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8602, Japan (M.Y., A.M., H.H.)
Several brittle culm mutations of rice (Oryza sativa) causing fragility of plant tissues have been identified genetically but not characterized at a molecular level. We show here that the genes responsible for three distinct brittle mutations of rice, induced by the insertion of the endogenous retrotransposon Tos17, correspond to CesA (cellulose synthase catalytic subunit) genes, OsCesA4, OsCesA7 and OsCesA9. Three CesA genes were expressed in seedlings, culms, premature panicles, and roots but not in mature leaves, and the expression profiles were almost identical among the three genes. Cellulose contents were dramatically decreased (8.9%-25.5% of the wild-type level) in the culms of null mutants of the three genes, indicating that these genes are not functionally redundant. Consistent with these results, cell walls in the cortical fiber cells were shown to be thinner in all the mutants than in wild-type plants. Based on these observations, the structure of a cellulose-synthesizing complex involved in the synthesis of the secondary cell wall is discussed.
1 This work was supported by the Program for Promotion of Basic Research Activities for Innovation Biosciences. 2 Present address: Advanced Technology Research Laboratory, Oji Paper Co., Ltd., Koto-ku 135-8558, Tokyo, Japan. 3 Present address: Toyama Agricultural Research Center, Toyama 939-8153, Toyama, Japan. 4 Present address: HITEC Yokohama R&D Center, Yokohama 220-0004, Kanagawa, Japan. * Corresponding author; e-mail hirohiko{at}nias.affrc.go.jp; fax 81-298-38-7020. Received February 19, 2003; returned for revision March 24, 2003; accepted May 20, 2003. This article has been cited by other articles:
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