Inducible expression of the heterologous PAL2 promoter from bean in white pine (Pinus strobus) transgenic cells

Abstract

To elucidate heterologous promoter function in gymnosperms, we introduced the bean phenylalanine ammonia-lyase-β-glucuronidase (PAL2-GUS) gene fusion into white pine (Pinus strobus L.). Over 15 lines were produced and integration of Agrobacterium T-DNA was confirmed by Southern analysis. Induction of the reporter gene was detected in all of the lines tested following UV illumination. In contrast, a weak but constant induction was seen in only a few lines following treatment with salicylic acid (SA) or jasmonic acid (JA). However, pretreatment of suspension cultures with SA or JA enhanced the induction of PAL2-GUS expression by UV irradiation. This specific enhancement or potentiation was reduced by 50% by treating the cells with indomethacin, an inhibitor of phospholipase activity, suggesting that the observed potentiation of UV induction involves the octadecanoid pathway. The UV induction was completely abolished by treating the cells with okadaic acid, an inhibitor of phosphatase activity. Thus, the induction of the heterologous PAL2 promoter from bean is consistent with the induction of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) in angiosperms. Furthermore, our findings suggest that conifers, although phylogenetically distant to angiosperms, share some conserved promoter elements and some signal transduction mechanisms for UV-light perception.