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A 125 bp promoter fragment is sufficient for strong elicitor‐mediated gene activation in parsley.
Author(s) -
Löcht U.,
Meier I.,
Hahlbrock K.,
Somssich I. E.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
the embo journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.484
H-Index - 392
eISSN - 1460-2075
pISSN - 0261-4189
DOI - 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1990.tb07486.x
Subject(s) - physics , combinatorics , biology , stereochemistry , chemistry , mathematics
We describe the nucleotide sequence and some structural characteristics of a single copy gene encoding pathogenesis‐related protein 2 (PR2) in parsley (Petroselinum crispum). Transcriptional activation of this gene in cultured parsley cells treated with fungal elicitor leads to a rapid, large and transient accumulation of PR2 mRNA. The deduced PR2 protein belongs to a novel class of evolutionarily conserved polypeptides which are closely related to disease resistance in plants. Functional analysis of a series of truncated PR2 promoter fusions with the beta‐glucuronidase reporter gene, using parsley protoplasts for transient expression studies, identified a 5′ upstream element between positions −168 and −52 necessary for strong elicitor responsiveness. This small promoter fragment is active in conjunction with its own TATA box region as well as with the corresponding region from a heterologous promoter. The PR2 regulatory region exhibits no sequence similarity to any other elicitor‐responsive promoter known to date.