Frontiers in Plant Science (Oct 2020)

Insights Into the Regulation of the Expression Pattern of Calvin-Benson-Bassham Cycle Enzymes in C3 and C4 Grasses

  • Chidi Afamefule,
  • Christine A. Raines

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.570436
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11

Abstract

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C4 photosynthesis is characterized by the compartmentalization of the processes of atmospheric uptake of CO2 and its conversion into carbohydrate between mesophyll and bundle-sheath cells. As a result, most of the enzymes participating in the Calvin-Benson-Bassham (CBB) cycle, including RubisCO, are highly expressed in bundle-sheath cells. There is evidence that changes in the regulatory sequences of RubisCO contribute to its bundle-sheath-specific expression, however, little is known about how the spatial-expression pattern of other CBB cycle enzymes is regulated. In this study, we use a computational approach to scan for transcription factor binding sites in the regulatory regions of the genes encoding CBB cycle enzymes, SBPase, FBPase, PRK, and GAPDH-B, of C3 and C4 grasses. We identified potential cis-regulatory elements present in each of the genes studied here, regardless of the photosynthetic path used by the plant. The trans-acting factors that bind these elements have been validated in A. thaliana and might regulate the expression of the genes encoding CBB cycle enzymes. In addition, we also found C4-specific transcription factor binding sites in the genes encoding CBB cycle enzymes that could potentially contribute to the pathway-specific regulation of gene expression. These results provide a foundation for the functional analysis of the differences in regulation of genes encoding CBB cycle enzymes between C3 and C4 grasses.

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