Light induction of somatic embryogenesis and dark germination of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh
Date
2013-05-14
Authors
Chan, Aaron
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Abstract
The ability to form embryos from somatic cells or somatic embryogenesis (SE) is a form of totipotency present in plants. The effect of light on SE is poorly understood. Somatic embryogenesis of Arabidopsis thaliana in the visible region was mainly induced by red light (660 nm). The red light receptor PHYTOCHROME E (PHYE) was the only PHY mutant that reduced SE. Transcriptional analysis of phyE and darkness showed several hundred fold reduction in CONSTITUTIVE PHOTOMORPHIC DWARF (CPD) expression, a rate limiting enzyme in brassinosteroid (BR) biosynthesis. Application of BR partially rescued AGAMOUS LIKE 15 (AGL15) expression, a key SE gene, under darkness and in the phyE mutant. The results support a model where red light acts through PHYE and subsequently brassinosteroid signalling to induce SE through AGL15.
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Keywords
Embryogenesis, Germination