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A TCP domain transcription factor controls flower type specification along the radial axis of the Gerbera (Asteraceae) inflorescence
- Source :
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105:9117-9122
- Publication Year :
- 2008
- Publisher :
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2008.
-
Abstract
- Several key processes in plant development are regulated by TCP transcription factors. CYCLOIDEA-like (CYC-like) TCP domain proteins have been shown to control flower symmetry in distantly related plant lineages. Gerbera hybrida , a member of one of the largest clades of angiosperms, the sunflower family (Asteraceae), is an interesting model for developmental studies because its elaborate inflorescence comprises different types of flowers that have specialized structures and functions. The morphological differentiation of flower types involves gradual changes in flower size and symmetry that follow the radial organization of the densely packed inflorescence. Differences in the degree of petal fusion further define the distinct shapes of the Gerbera flower types. To study the role of TCP transcription factors during specification of this complex inflorescence organization, we characterized the CYC-like homolog GhCYC2 from Gerbera . The expression of GhCYC2 follows a gradient along the radial axis of the inflorescence. GhCYC2 is expressed in the marginal, bilaterally symmetrical ray flowers but not in the centermost disk flowers, which are nearly radially symmetrical and have significantly less fused petals. Overexpression of GhCYC2 causes disk flowers to obtain morphologies similar to ray flowers. Both expression patterns and transgenic phenotypes suggest that GhCYC2 is involved in differentiation among Gerbera flower types, providing the first molecular evidence that CYC-like TCP factors take part in defining the complex inflorescence structure of the Asteraceae, a major determinant of the family's evolutionary success.
- Subjects :
- 0106 biological sciences
Gerbera
Molecular Sequence Data
Flowers
Asteraceae
01 natural sciences
03 medical and health sciences
Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
Phylogenetics
Botany
Floral symmetry
Transcription factor
Phylogeny
Body Patterning
Plant Proteins
030304 developmental biology
0303 health sciences
Multidisciplinary
Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
biology
Gene Expression Profiling
fungi
food and beverages
Biological Sciences
Plants, Genetically Modified
biology.organism_classification
Protein Structure, Tertiary
DNA-Binding Proteins
Phenotype
Inflorescence
Evolutionary developmental biology
Petal
Transcription Factors
010606 plant biology & botany
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 10916490 and 00278424
- Volume :
- 105
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....8446454162ce82223068d45d1e46caa8