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First published online August 27, 2004; 10.1104/pp.104.046854 Plant Physiology 136:2676-2686 (2004) © 2004 American Society of Plant Biologists Embryo-Specific Reduction of ADP-Glc Pyrophosphorylase Leads to an Inhibition of Starch Synthesis and a Delay in Oil Accumulation in Developing Seeds of Oilseed Rape1Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Am Mühlenberg 1, 14476 Golm, Germany (H.V., P.G.); University of Kaiserslautern, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany (T.M., H.E.N.); and Max Planck Institute for Breeding Research, 50829 Cologne, Germany (N.M.)
In oil-storing Brassica napus (rape) seeds, starch deposition occurs only transiently in the early stages of development, and starch is absent from mature seeds. This work investigates the influence of a reduction of ADP-Glc pyrophosphorylase (AGPase) on storage metabolism in these seeds. To manipulate the activity of AGPase in a seed-specific manner, a cDNA encoding the small subunit of AGPase was expressed in the sense or antisense orientation under the control of an embryo-specific thioesterase promoter. Lines were selected showing an embryo-specific decrease in AGPase due to antisense and cosuppression at different stages of development. At early developmental stages (25 days after flowering), a 50% decrease in AGPase activity was accompanied by similar decreases in starch content and the rate of starch synthesis measured by injecting 14C-Suc into seeds in planta. In parallel to inhibition of starch synthesis, the level of ADP-Glc decreased, whereas Glc 1-phosphate levels increased, providing biochemical evidence that inhibition of starch synthesis was due to repression of AGPase. At 25 days after flowering, repression of starch synthesis also led to a decrease in the rate of 14C-Suc degradation and its further metabolism via other metabolic pathways. This was not accompanied by an increase in the levels of soluble sugars, indicating that Suc import was inhibited in parallel. Flux through glycolysis, the activities of hexokinase, and inorganic pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase, and the adenylate energy state (ATP to ADP ratio) of the transgenic seeds decreased, indicating inhibition of glycolysis and respiration compared to wild type. This was accompanied by a marked decrease in the rate of storage lipid (triacylglycerol) synthesis and in the fatty acid content of seeds. In mature seeds, glycolytic enzyme activities, metabolite levels, and ATP levels remained unchanged, and the fatty acid content was only marginally lower compared to wild type, indicating that the influence of AGPase on carbon metabolism and oil accumulation was largely compensated for in the later stages of seed development. Results indicate that AGPase exerts high control over starch synthesis at early stages of seed development where it is involved in establishing the sink activity of the embryo and the onset of oil accumulation.
1 This work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (grant no. Ge 878/1–3 to P.G.) and by the Bundesministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft u. Forsten through the Fachagentur Nachwachsende Rohstoffe (to H.E.N., T.M.). 2 These authors contributed equally to the paper. Article, publication date, and citation information can be found at www.plantphysiol.org/cgi/doi/10.1104/pp.104.046854. * Corresponding author; e-mail geigenberger{at}mpimp-golm.mpg.de; fax 49–331–567–8408. Received May 24, 2004; returned for revision June 21, 2004; accepted June 21, 2004. This article has been cited by other articles:
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