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Plant Physiol. (1999) 119: 65-72
Temporal and Spatial Patterns of Accumulation of the Transcript
of Myo-Inositol-1-Phosphate Synthase and Phytin-Containing
Particles during Seed Development in Rice1
Kaoru T. Yoshida,
Tomikichi Wada,
Hiroshi Koyama2,
Ritsuko Mizobuchi-Fukuoka3, and
Satoshi Naito*
Department of Agricultural and Environmental Biology, Graduate
School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo
113-8657, Japan (K.T.Y., H.K., R.M.-F.); School of Agricultural
Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8601, Japan (T.W.); and Department of Applied Bioscience, Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido
University, Sapporo 060-8589, Japan (S.N.)
 |
ABSTRACT |
Myo-inositol-1-phosphate
(I[1]P) synthase (EC 5.5.1.4) catalyzes the reaction from glucose
6-phosphate to I(1)P, the first step of myo-inositol
biosynthesis. Among the metabolites of I(1)P is inositol
hexakisphosphate, which forms a mixed salt called phytin
or phytate, a storage form of phosphate and cations in seeds. We have
isolated a rice (Oryza sativa L.) cDNA clone, pRINO1, that is highly homologous to the I(1)P synthase from yeast and plants.
Northern analysis of total RNA showed that the transcript accumulated
to high levels in embryos but was undetectable in shoots, roots, and
flowers. In situ hybridization of developing seeds showed that the
transcript first appeared in the apical region of globular-stage
embryos 2 d after anthesis (DAA). Strong signals were detected in
the scutellum and aleurone layer after 4 DAA. The level of the
transcript in these cells increased until 7 DAA, after which time it
gradually decreased. Phytin-containing particles called globoids
appeared 4 DAA in the scutellum and aleurone layer, coinciding with the
localization of the RINO1 transcript. The temporal and spatial patterns
of accumulation of the RINO1 transcript and globoids suggest that I(1)P
synthase directs phytin biosynthesis in rice seeds.
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INTRODUCTION |
Myo-inositol and I(1)P are essential for the survival
of eukaryotic cells, because various metabolic routes diverge from
these two compounds. A number of possible roles for
myo-inositol and I(1)P metabolites in plant development have
been demonstrated (for review, see Bohnert et al., 1995 ). I(1)P is
utilized for the synthesis of plasma membrane phosphoinositides, which
are involved in signal transduction as sources of second messengers (Gross and Boss, 1993 ). Myo-inositol combined with Gal is
incorporated into the raffinose family of the vegetative storage form
of carbohydrates (Kandler and Hopf, 1982 ). Oxidized inositols serve as
noncellulosic cell wall components (Loewus and Loewus, 1983 ), and
methylated inositols were shown to be involved in osmoprotection in a
halophytic plant (Ishitani et al., 1996 ). In addition, I(1)P is further
phosphorylated to inositol hexakisphosphoric acid, or phytic
acid, which strongly binds metallic cations such as K, Mg, Mn, Ca, Fe,
and Zn via ionic associations with negatively charged phosphates (Maga,
1982 ; Lott et al., 1995 ) to form a mixed salt called phytin or phytate
(Ashton, 1976 ). The synthesis of phytin as a storage form of phosphate and cations is a metabolic pathway unique to plants (Loewus and Dickinson, 1982 ).
Phytin is mainly stored in protein bodies in seeds as spherical
inclusions called globoids (Lott et al., 1995 ). Cereal grains and oil
seeds are particularly rich sources of phytin, and the phosphorus of
phytin represents 80% to 90% of total phosphorus in these seeds
(Maga, 1982 ). In rice (Oryza sativa) seeds phytin accumulates in the aleurone and scutellum cells but not in the starchy
endosperm cells (Tanaka et al., 1973 ; Ogawa et al., 1977 ). During
germination phytin is digested by an acid phosphatase called phytase
(Laboure et al., 1993 ; Barrientos et al., 1994 ; Hubel and Beck, 1996 ),
and the released phosphate, cations, and inositol are utilized by the
seedlings. However, despite its biological importance, the regulation
of phytin biosynthesis remains to be elucidated. Moreover, although its
function in phosphorus storage is important for the growth of
seedlings, monogastric animals are unable to digest phytin (Simons et
al., 1990 ); therefore, the development of cultivars with a low seed
phytin content is one of the major breeding objectives in several crop
species.
I(1)P synthase (EC 5.5.1.4) catalyzes the reaction from Glc 6-P to
I(1)P, the first step of inositol metabolism. Recently, cDNA clones
with high homology to the I(1)P synthase gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Johnson and Henry, 1989 ) have been reported from
several plant species, including Spirodela polyrrhiza (Smart
and Fleming, 1993 ), Arabidopsis (Johnson, 1994 ; Johnson and
Sussex, 1995 ), Citrus paradisi (Abu-Abied and Holland,
1994 ), Phaseolus vulgaris (Wang and Johnson, 1996 ), and
Mesembryanthemum crystallinum (Ishitani et al., 1996 ). In
these studies transcripts were induced in various cellular processes,
such as ABA-induced dormant bud formation in S. polyrrhiza
(Smart and Fleming, 1993 ), salt and cold stresses in M. crystallinum (Ishitani et al., 1996 ), and photoperiodic response
in C. paradisi (Abu-Abied and Holland, 1994 ). However, to
our knowledge, there has been no report on the relationship between
expression of the I(1)P synthase gene and phytin synthesis in
developing seeds.
During the course of our research to isolate genes that may play a role
in embryogenesis in rice (Yoshida et al., 1994a , 1994b ; Mizobuchi-Fukuoka et al., 1996 ), we isolated cDNA clones that were
preferentially expressed in calli in which somatic embryogenesis was
induced (Mizobuchi-Fukuoka et al., 1996 ). In the present study we
analyzed one of the clones, pRINO1, that showed a high homology to
I(1)P synthase from yeast and plants. We report the accumulation pattern of the RINO1 transcript in planta during seed development of
rice in relation to the accumulation of phytin-containing particles.
The accession number for the sequence reported in this paper is
AB012107.
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MATERIALS AND METHODS |
Plant Material, Cell Cultures, and cDNA Clones
Rice (Oryza sativa L. var japonica cv
Kamenoo) plants were grown in pots in a greenhouse under natural light
conditions (for flowers and seeds), or in a growth chamber (LH-100,
Nippon Medical and Chemical Instruments, Osaka, Japan) at 28°C with
14 h of illumination per day at an intensity of approximately 200 µE m 2 s 1 (for 7-d-old seedlings).
The initiation of callus suspension cultures from the scutellum
of mature seeds and the induction of somatic embryogenesis and
organogenesis (regeneration) have been described previously (Yoshida et
al., 1994a ).
The isolation of the pRINO1 (rice
myo-inositol-1-phosphate
synthase, see below) cDNA clone was described previously
(Mizobuchi-Fukuoka et al., 1996 ). A cDNA library prepared from calli
7 d after induction of embryogenesis (embryogenic calli) was
differentially screened using first-strand cDNA probes prepared from
unorganized calli, calli 7 d after induction of organogenesis
(organogenetic calli), and embryogenic calli. The pRINO1 clone showed
markedly stronger signals with the embryogenic calli probe than with
the other probes (referred to as pRSEM2 by Mizobuchi-Fukuoka et al.,
1996 ).
Extraction of RNA and Northern Analysis
Total RNA from shoots and roots of 7-d-old seedlings, from flowers
just before heading, from immature embryos 7 DAA, and from the
unorganized, organogenetic, and embryogenic calli was prepared using
Isogen (Nippon Gene, Tokyo, Japan). Total RNA was fractionated on 1.2%
agarose-formaldehyde gels and transferred to
Hybond-N+ membranes (Amersham). The
EcoRI- and XhoI-excised insert of pRINO1 cDNA was
labeled with [ -32P]dCTP by the
random-priming method (Feinberg and Vogelstein, 1984 ) and used as a
probe. Hybridization was carried out at 42°C according to the
membrane manufacturer's instructions (Amersham). The final wash
was in 0.1× SSPE/0.1% SDS at 42°C.
Genomic Southern Hybridization
Rice genomic DNA was prepared from leaves as described by Murray
and Thompson (1980) . DNA was digested with restriction endonucleases, electrophoresed on a 0.8% agarose gel, and blotted onto
Hybond-N+ membrane. Restriction enzymes that do
not digest the pRINO1 insert were used to digest the genomic DNA. The
blot was probed with the pRINO1 insert labeled with
[ -32P]dCTP by the random-priming method
(Feinberg and Vogelstein, 1984 ). Hybridization was performed at 65°C
according to the membrane manufacturer's instructions (Amersham). The
final wash was in 0.1× SSPE/0.1% SDS at 65°C. For low-stringency
hybridization the membrane was hybridized and washed at 58°C.
DNA Sequencing and 5 -RACE
Both strands of the cDNA insert were sequenced using a dye-primer
cycle-sequencing kit (Prism, Applied Biosystems) and an automatic DNA
sequencer (model 377A, Applied Biosystems).
5 -RACE was carried out with the poly(A+) RNA
from the 7-DAA zygotic embryos using a 5 -RACE system (Life
Technologies). The primers used for 5 -RACE were
5 -dCCATTGTGGCATTGAACC-3 for the 5 extension reaction and
5 -dCCACAACACCACCACCTT-3 for the nested amplification. The PCR
fragment obtained was cloned into a pCRII vector (Invitrogen, San
Diego, CA). The integrity of the junction between the 5 -RACE clone and
the original clone was verified by sequencing the reverse-transcription
PCR product.
Searches of nonredundant protein and nucleotide databases for sequence
similarity were carried out using the Basic Local Alignment Search Tool
(National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Institutes of
Health, Bethesda, MD; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/). Codon analysis and
alignment of the amino acid sequences were carried out using the DNASIS
program (Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan).
In Situ Hybridization
In situ hybridization was carried out as described by Kouchi and
Hata (1993) with some modifications. Developing seeds were fixed in 4%
(w/v) p-formaldehyde/0.25% (w/v) glutaraldehyde and embedded in Paraplast Plus (Oxford, St. Louis, MO), and 8-µm sections were mounted on slides coated with Vectabond (Vector Laboratories, Burlingame, CA). The sections were hybridized with DIG-labeled RNA
probes (Tautz and Pfeifle, 1989 ) synthesized from the pRINO1 cDNA using
a labeling kit (Boehringer Mannheim). Washing and detection procedures
were as described by Kouchi and Hata (1993) .
Visualization of Globoids
Developing seeds were fixed for 3 to 4 h in a mixed
aldehyde solution containing 1.4% glutaraldehyde and 2.0%
p-formaldehyde in 0.05 M sodium
cacodylate buffer, pH 7.4, at 4°C. The fixed tissues were dehydrated
through a graded ethanol series according to the method of Feder and
O'Brien (1968) , and then embedded in 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (Wako
Pure Chemical, Osaka, Japan). Thin sections (2 µm) were stained with
0.5% toluidine blue O (Chroma-Gesellshaft Schmid GmbH, Köngen,
Germany) in 5% ethanol. Phytin-containing particles (globoids) showed
a purple metachromatic color (Jacobsen et al., 1971 ), whereas other
cellular components appeared light blue to blue.
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RESULTS |
Accumulation of the RINO1 Transcript in Callus and in Planta
The cDNA clone pRINO1 showed a markedly stronger signal with the
probe prepared from embryogenic calli than those from the organogenetic
calli or unorganized calli (Mizobuchi-Fukuoka et al., 1996 ).
Accumulation of the RINO1 transcript in calli was analyzed by northern
analysis of total RNA isolated from the embryogenic calli,
organogenetic calli, and unorganized calli. As shown in Figure
1A, the RINO1 transcript accumulated
preferentially in the embryogenic calli. The RINO1 probe hybridized to
a single band about 1.9 kb in length. A weak signal of the same size
was detected in the organogenetic calli after a long exposure (data not
shown).

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| Figure 1.
Northern and Southern analyses of RINO1. A, Total
RNA (10 µg per lane) isolated from unorganized calli (Uc),
embryogenic calli (Ec), and organogenetic calli (Oc) was separated on
agarose gels containing formaldehyde, blotted, and hybridized with a
32P-labeled pRINO1 insert. Positions and sizes (in kb) of
rRNAs are indicated. B, Total RNA isolated from roots (Rt) and shoots
(Sh) 7 d after imbibition, from flowers (F), and from zygotic
embryos 7 DAA (Em) were hybridized with the RINO1 probe as in A. C,
Rice genomic DNA (5 µg per lane) digested with EcoRI
(E), HindIII (H), or XhoI (X) were
separated on an agarose gel, blotted, and hybridized with the RINO1
probe. Positions and sizes (in kb) of markers are indicated.
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Since the pRINO1 clone was isolated by differential screening to
isolate somatic embryogenesis-abundant genes, we expected the
transcript to be accumulated preferentially in zygotic embryos in
planta. We tested this expectation with northern analysis of total RNA isolated from shoots and roots of 7-d-old seedlings, from
flowers just before heading, and from zygotic embryos 7 DAA. Figure 1B
shows that the RINO1 probe detected an abundant transcript of the same
size in zygotic embryos but not in the other tissues tested.
Sequence Analysis of the Full-Length pRINO1 cDNA
Sequence analysis of the original pRINO1 insert indicated
that the length of the cDNA (1111 bp) was shorter than the transcript size detected by northern analysis (1.9 kb). 5 -RACE was
performed to obtain the full-length cDNA, and an additional 776 bases
5 of the original pRINO1 insert were obtained. The total length of
this cDNA was 1887 bp, which corresponds well with the size detected by
northern analysis.
The DNA sequence of the full-length pRINO1 cDNA (accession no.
AB012107) revealed a 510-amino acid open reading frame with a 109-bp
5 -untranslated region, a 225-bp 3 -untranslated region, and a
20-bp poly(A+) tail. Alignment of the deduced
amino acid sequence (Fig. 2) revealed an
approximately 50% identity to Ino1, the I(1)P synthase gene
from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Johnson and Henry, 1989 ;
accession no. L23520) and 86% to 88% identity to the I(1)P synthase
cDNA from Spirodela polyrrhiza (Smart and Fleming, 1993 ;
accession no. Z11693), Brassica napus (U66307), Arabidopsis
(Johnson, 1994 ; accession no. U04876), and Phaseolus
vulgaris (Wang and Johnson, 1996 ; accession no. U38920).

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| Figure 2.
Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences of
RINO1 (Os) with the amino acid sequences of I(1)P synthases from
S. polyrrhiza (Sp), B. napus (Bn),
Arabidopsis (At), P. vulgaris (Pv), and
S. cerevisiae (Sc). Positions that are identical to the
RINO1 sequence are indicated by dots, and gaps introduced for maximum
alignments are indicated by dashes.
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Genomic Southern Analysis
Genomic Southern analysis was carried out to determine the
complexity of the RINO1-encoding gene(s). Genomic DNA digested with
restriction enzymes that did not digest the pRINO1 insert produced only
one strongly hybridizing band in each digest (Fig. 1C). No additional
band was visible in any of the digests, even with low-stringency
hybridization (data not shown). These results suggest that a single
gene encoding the pRINO1 insert is present in the rice genome.
Accumulation of the RINO1 Transcript in Developing Seeds
In situ hybridization was performed to determine the accumulation
pattern of the RINO1 transcript during the early embryogenesis of
rice seeds. Cell division of the fertilized egg starts at about 20 h after anthesis (Satoh and Omura, 1986 ), and the embryo is globular
until 3 DAA (Fig. 3, A and B). By 4 DAA
the scutellum is distinct in that vacuolation and the emergence of the
coleoptile can be recognized by a notch at the ventral surface of the
embryo (Fig. 3C). Soon after this the shoot apical meristem is
distinguishable just below the coleoptile and the radicle meristem
is also established (Fig. 3D). By 7 DAA the scutellum, coleoptile,
coleorhiza, vascular procambium, epiblast, and plumule are
visible (Fig. 3, E and H), as can be seen in mature embryos. By 10 DAA
morphological differentiation of the embryo is almost complete (Fig. 3,
F and K), with seeds maturing at about 45 DAA.

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| Figure 3.
In situ localization of the RINO1 transcript
detected by a DIG-labeled antisense probe (A-G) and globoids detected
by toluidine blue staining (I-L) in developing embryos 2 (A), 3 (B and
I), 4 (C), 5 (D and J), 7 (E), 10 (G and K), and 14 DAA (G and L). An
embryo 7 DAA was also hybridized with a DIG-labeled sense probe (H).
cp, Coleoptile; eb, epiblast; en, endosperm; r, radicle; sa, shoot
apical meristem; st, scutellum; v, vascular procambium. Some of the
globoids in J are marked with arrowheads. The dorsal side is to the
right of each panel. Scale bars represent 50 µm.
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The accumulation pattern of the RINO1 transcript in rice seeds was
determined by in situ hybridization of longitudinal sections of seeds
with a DIG-labeled antisense RNA probe (Fig. 3, A-G). The results
showed that signals of the transcript first appeared in the globular
stage embryo 2 DAA (Fig. 3A). The signal was found only in the upper
half of the embryo. In the 3-DAA embryo, the stage before the
appearance of the coleoptile, the signal was detected in the peripheral
region of the dorsal side, where the scutellum is to be differentiated
(Fig. 3B). The level of the transcript continued to increase until 7 DAA, when it began to decrease gradually (Fig. 3, C-G). In the 7-DAA
embryo signals were detected in the scutellum, coleoptile, plumule,
radicle, and epiblast (Fig. 3E). Although the signal in the coleoptile, plumule, radicle, and the epiblast disappeared by 10 DAA, it could still be detected in the scutellum of 10- and 14-DAA embryos (Fig. 3, F
and G). The RINO1 transcript could not be detected in the vascular
procambium of either the scutellum or the embryo proper (Fig. 3, E-G).
Although the RINO1 transcript accumulated to a high level in the
scutellum, closer investigation revealed that the transcript level was
very low in the outermost cell layer of the scutellum (Fig.
4, A-E), the area that differentiates
into the epithelium.

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| Figure 4.
In situ localization of the RINO1 transcript
detected by a DIG-labeled antisense probe (A-E) and globoids detected
by toluidine blue staining (F-J) in the scutellum of embryos 4 (A and
F), 5 (B and G), 7 (C and H), 10 (D and I), and 14 DAA (E and J).
Arrows indicate the border between the scutellum (bottom) and
epithelium (top). Some of the globoids in F and G are marked with
arrowheads. Scale bars represent 10 µm for A and F and 50 µm for B
to E and G to J.
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In addition to the embryos, signals were also detected in the outer
cell layers of the endosperm (Fig. 5,
A-E), which differentiate into the aleurone layer. The outer cell
layers of the endosperm could be distinguished morphologically 5 DAA
(Fig. 5, B and G). In mature seeds the aleurone layer consists of up to
five cell files on the dorsal side and decreases to one cell layer on
the ventral side. The signal first appeared 3 DAA in the outer cell layers of the dorsal side (Fig. 5A) and rapidly spread to the ventral
side (data not shown). The level of the transcript increased until 7 DAA and then gradually decreased (Fig. 5, B-E). The expression level
in the aleurone layer was lower than that in the scutellum. No signal
could be detected in the inner endosperm cells at any stage (Fig. 5,
A-E).

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| Figure 5.
In situ localization of the RINO1 transcript
detected by a DIG-labeled antisense probe (A-E) and globoids detected
by toluidine blue staining (F-J) in the aleurone layer in the dorsal
side of seeds 3 (A and F), 5 (B and G), 7 (C and H), 10 (D and I), and
14 DAA (E and J). Arrows indicate the border between the aleurone layer
(bottom) and maternal tissues (top). en, Endosperm. Some of the
globoids in G are marked with arrowheads. Scale bars represent 50 µm.
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Accumulation of the RINO1 transcript was also observed in the shoot
apical meristem of embryos during an early stage of development (Figs.
3E and 6). The shoot apical meristem could be identified visibly 5 DAA,
and the accumulation of the RINO1 transcript was evident in a narrow
region of the shoot apical meristem between 5 and 7 DAA (Fig.
6) but not 10 DAA (Fig. 3F).

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| Figure 6.
In situ localization of the RINO1 transcript
detected by a DIG-labeled antisense probe in the shoot apical meristem
region of embryos 5 (A), 6 (B), and 7 DAA (C). cp, Coleoptile; fl,
first leaf; sa, shoot apical meristem; sl, second leaf. Scale bars
represent 10 µm.
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Accumulation of Globoids in Developing Seeds
To determine whether phytin synthesis in seeds is related to the
accumulation of the RINO1 transcript, developing seeds 1 to 14 DAA were
stained for globoids using toluidine blue (see ``Materials and Methods''). Globoids first appeared 4 DAA in both the scutellum (Figs. 3J and 4F) and the aleurone layer (Fig. 5G). The size and number of
globoids gradually increased in both tissues and also appeared in other
embryo tissues such as the coleoptile, plumule, coleorhiza, and
epiblast but not the vascular procambium (Fig. 3, K and L).
In the embryo the largest number and size of globoids were observed in
the scutellum (Figs. 3L and 4J), although the outermost cell layer of
the scutellum, the epithelium, contained a very small number of tiny
globoids even 14 DAA (Fig. 4J). In contrast to the aleurone layer, no
globoids were observed in the starchy endosperm cells, even 14 DAA
(Fig. 5J).
Accumulation of globoids in the shoot apical meristem of developing
seeds was not readily observable. However, a limited number of small
globoids could be seen in a region several cell layers away from the
shoot apical meristem (data not shown).
 |
DISCUSSION |
We analyzed the expression pattern of a cDNA clone, pRINO1, which
is highly homologous to the I(1)P synthase genes of yeast and plants.
Localization of globoids, or phytin-containing particles, corresponded
well with the accumulation pattern of the RINO1 transcript. Both
globoids and the RINO1 transcript accumulated to high levels within
the scutellum and the aleurone layer and much less in the outermost
cell layer of the scutellum. We observed only few globoids and RINO1
transcripts in the starchy endosperm throughout seed development. In
mature seeds of rice, globoids are observed in most of the embryo
tissues and aleurone layer (Wada and Lott, 1997 ); however, the size
varies depending on the tissue, and globoids larger than 1 µm in
diameter are mainly observed in the scutellum and the aleurone layer
(Wada and Lott, 1997 ). These two tissues are the ones in which the
RINO1 transcript accumulated most abundantly and in which the duration
of the transcript accumulation was the longest. These results
demonstrated a close relationship between the RINO1 transcript and
globoid accumulation, suggesting that I(1)P synthase plays a role in
phytin biosynthesis in developing seeds of rice.
The accumulation of the RINO1 transcript started in the embryo and the
aleurone layer 2 and 3 DAA, respectively. Globoids first appeared in
these cells 4 DAA. Therefore, the accumulation of the RINO1 transcript
precedes the appearance of globoids, supporting a role for I(1)P
synthase in phytin synthesis. Our results also suggest that phytin
synthesis is regulated at least in part at the level of I(1)P synthase
mRNA accumulation.
Seed storage reserves generally accumulate in middle to late stages of
seed development (Goldberg et al., 1989 ), following the completion of
embryo morphogenesis. Glutelins and prolamins, the major seed storage
proteins of rice, are detected 10 DAA but not 5 DAA (Li and Okita,
1993 ). We found that globoids started to accumulate as early as 4 DAA.
In rice seeds cell division of the starchy endosperm ceases by 10 DAA
(Hoshikawa, 1967 ), and the embryo morphogenesis is also completed by
that time. Therefore, the onset of globoid accumulation is unusually
early for a seed storage reserve. The accumulation of phytin during the
early stages of seed development must have a role not only after
germination but also during seed development.
It is plausible that tissues accumulate phytin prior to a large demand
for phosphorus, such as that of seed development. In fact, the shoot
apical meristem also accumulated the RINO1 transcript during early
embryogenesis. In support of this idea, the I(1)P synthase gene is
expressed very soon after ABA-induced turion differentiation from
growing fronds in the aquatic monocotyledonous plant S. polyrrhiza (Smart and Fleming, 1993 ). The fact that the pRINO1
cDNA was initially isolated from the embryogenic calli and that the
transcript accumulated to a high level in the embryogenic calli but not
in the unorganized calli before induction of somatic embryogenesis may
also support this idea. However, it is still not known whether the
accumulation of I(1)P synthase transcripts is accompanied by the
accumulation of phytin in these cases.
A number of metabolites of myo-inositol and I(1)P play
important roles in plant development (Bohnert et al., 1995 ). Although a
close relationship between I(1)P synthase and the accumulation of
phytin was shown in the present study, I(1)P synthase in rice could
have roles other than phytin biosynthesis in seeds. Of the reports of
the expression of I(1)P synthase in plants, only in the case of a
halophyte was a role for this enzyme proposed. In Mesembryanthum
crystallinum, I(1)P synthase, which is induced by salt stress, was
suggested to have a role in the production of osmoprotectants that are
methylated derivatives of I(1)P (Ishitani et al., 1996 ). Finer analyses
of I(1)P synthase expression in tissues other than seeds will give
further insight into the role of I(1)P synthase in rice. In situ
analysis showed that the RINO1 transcript can be detected in very young
leaves of 3-week-old plants (H. Koyama and K.T. Yoshida, unpublished
data).
Whatever the role(s) of I(1)P synthase in rice seeds, the accumulation
of the RINO1 transcript in the apical region of globular stage embryos
2 DAA and in the dorsal region 3 DAA indicates that RINO1 provides an
early molecular marker for the establishment of both apical-basal and
dorso-ventral patterns during rice embryogenesis. Jones and Rost (1991)
reported that the cells of the apical two-thirds of the rice embryo at
the end of the globular stage are vacuolated and are thought to be the
progenitors of the scutellum. The accumulation of the RINO1 transcript
in the apical region of embryos 2 DAA is likely to indicate the
region expected to form the scutellum.
Phytin forms insoluble mixed salts with various mineral elements
(Ashton, 1976 ) and reduces the bioavailability of phosphorus and
minerals in monogastric animals, including humans. Supplementation of
feedings with phytase, which hydrolyzes phytin into Pi and myo-inositol (Laboure et al., 1993 ; Barrientos et al., 1994 ;
Hubel and Beck, 1996 ), improves the bioavailability of phosphorus
(Simons et al., 1990 ). Recently, a direct application of this using
phytase-producing transgenic plants was demonstrated (Pen et al., 1993 ;
Verwoerd et al., 1995 ). Development of cultivars with low phytin
content is another way to increase bioavailability. The reduction of
phytin content in seeds is one of the major breeding objectives in
several crops, including wheat (Batten, 1986 ), field beans (Griffiths and Thomas, 1981 ), soybean (Raboy et al., 1984 ), and pearl millet (Satija and Thukral, 1985 ). One problem, however, is that cultivars with a low phytin content often have low phosphorus and protein contents as well (Raboy et al., 1991 ). Studies of the expression of the
I(1)P synthase gene and the transport of phosphorus in seeds will
provide a means to genetically engineer plants with a low phytin
content.
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FOOTNOTES |
1
This work was supported in part by a
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Ministry of Education,
Science and Culture of Japan to K.T.Y.
2
Present address: Kyushu National Agricultural
Experimental Station, Chikugo 833-0041, Japan.
3
Present address: Nakano Central Research
Institute, Nakano Vinegar Co., Handa 475-8585, Japan.
*
Corresponding author; e-mail naito{at}abs.agr.hokudai.ac.jp; fax
81-11-706-4932.
Received June 15, 1998;
accepted October 9, 1998.
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ABBREVIATIONS |
Abbreviations:
DAA, days after anthesis.
DIG, digoxygenin.
I(1)P, myo-inositol-1-phosphate.
5 -RACE, rapid
amplification of 5 -cDNA ends.
 |
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
The authors are grateful to Drs. Eizo Maeda, Fumio Takaiwa,
Daisuke Shibata, Toru Fujiwara, and Eiji Nambara for valuable discussions and to Mr. Derek Bartlem for carefully reading the manuscript.
 |
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