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Double‐Stranded RNA‐Mediated Downregulation of pdhk Gene Expression to Shorten Maturation Time of a Late Maturing Native indica Rice Cultivar, Badshahbhog
Author(s) -
Mukherjee Rajeswari,
Gayen Srimonta,
Chakraborty Anirban,
Bhattacharyya Jagannath,
Maiti Mrinal K.,
Basu Asitava,
Sen Soumitra K.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.76
H-Index - 147
eISSN - 1435-0653
pISSN - 0011-183X
DOI - 10.2135/cropsci2011.07.0352
Subject(s) - biology , downregulation and upregulation , genetically modified rice , oryza sativa , gene expression , gene silencing , gene , microbiology and biotechnology , transgene , genetically modified crops , genetics
In eukaryotic organisms, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDHK) plays a significant role in the Krebs cycle, cellular respiration, and energy production by regulating the mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (mtPDC) via reversible phosphorylation. The present study reports pdhk gene downregulation effects on maturation time of a late maturing, aromatic, native indica rice ( Oryza sativa L.) cultivar, Badshahbhog. A double‐stranded ribonucleic acid (dsRNA)‐mediated gene silencing strategy was used to downregulate rice mitochondrial pdhk gene expression. The transgenic plant lines displayed altered growth patterns—early flower initiation, increased grain formation per panicle, and ∼10 d earlier maturation—compared to a nontransformed cultivar. Northern blot, reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR), and real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyses provided evidence for endogenous pdhk gene downregulation in T 0 , T 1 , and T 2 generations of transgenic rice lines. These results provided evidence for stable pdhk gene downregulation throughout filial generations. It was further observed that transgenic lines with two insertion events of transferred dsRNA effected more downregulation of pdhk gene expression relative to rice lines carrying a single dsRNA insertion.