Nucleotide Sequence and Spatial Expression Pattern of a Drought- and Abscisic Acid-Induced Gene of Tomato

The nucleotide sequence of le16, a tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) gene induced by drought stress and regulated by abscisic acid specifically in aerial vegetative tissue, is presented. The single open reading frame contained within the gene has the capacity to encode a polypeptide of 12.7 kilodaltons and is interrupted by a small intron. The predicted polypeptide is rich in leucine, glycine, and alanine and has an isoelectric point of 8.7. The amino terminus is hydrophobic and characteristic of signal sequences that target polypeptides for export from the cytoplasm. There is homology (47.2% identity) between the amino terminus of the LE 16 polypeptide and the corresponding amino terminal domain of the maize phospholipid transfer protein. le16 was expressed in drought-stressed leaf, petiole, and stem tissue and to a much lower extent in the pericarp of mature green tomato fruit and developing seeds. No expression was detected in the pericarp of red fruit or in drought-stressed roots. Expression of le16 was also induced in leaf tissue by a variety of other abiotic stresses including polyethylene glycol-mediated water deficit, salinity, cold stress, and heat stress. None of these stresses or direct applications of abscisic acid induced the expression of le16 in the roots of the same plants. The unique expression characteristics of this gene indicates that novel regulatory mechanisms, in addition to endogenous abscisic acid, are involved in controlling gene expression.