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Allele-specific expression of a weeping lovegrass gene from the lignin biosynthetic pathway, caffeoyl-coenzyme A 3-O-methyltransferase

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Abstract

Eragrostis curvula is an important forage grass in marginal regions for its capacity to grow and develop in sandy, not very fertile soils and for its drought tolerance. However, its widespread use for animal production is limited at present since it has low forage quality. In forage species, lignin content has been recognized as one of the main factors that affects this parameter. The O-methylation at the C3 position of the phenolic ring of caffeic acid constitutes a key step in the lignin biosynthetic pathway. The enzyme caffeoyl-CoA 3-O-methyltransferase (CCoAOMT) catalyzes such methylation and is thus considered an interesting target for molecular breeding programs. Here we report the isolation of the full-length CCoAOMT cDNA from the E. curvula inflorescences library. Primers based on this sequence led to the amplification of seven unigenes from genomic DNA from cvs. Tanganyika, Don Pablo and Kromdraai. Since the major differences were located in the intron regions, these seven sequences resulted in four possible allelic forms. We further evaluated the allelic expression per tissue in cv. Tanganyika, the most variable genotype. The four alleles predicted by the genomic sequences were found to be expressed. Three of them were common to inflorescences, roots and leaves, while the other one seemed to be specific for inflorescences. The statistical analysis showed that the expression was not organ-independent. The information reported here constitutes a valuable tool for E. curvula breeding programs, aiming to alter lignin biosynthesis to improve forage quality without causing undesirable effects.

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Acknowledgments

We warmly acknowledge Natalia Moirano for performing the Southern Blotting, and Dr Alicia Carrera for helpful discussion. This work was funded by the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (ANPCyT, PICT 14624 and PAV 137) and Secretaría de Ciencia y Técnica (SECyT -UNS, PGI 24/A133), Argentina.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur, San Juan 670, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina

    Marina Lucía Díaz & Ingrid Garbus

  2. Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida (CERZOS), CONICET, Camino de La Carrindanga Km 7, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina

    Ingrid Garbus & Viviana Echenique

  3. Departamento de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional del Sur, San Andrés 800, 8000, Bahía Blanca, Argentina

    Viviana Echenique

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  1. Marina Lucía Díaz
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  2. Ingrid Garbus
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  3. Viviana Echenique
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Correspondence to Viviana Echenique.

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Díaz, M.L., Garbus, I. & Echenique, V. Allele-specific expression of a weeping lovegrass gene from the lignin biosynthetic pathway, caffeoyl-coenzyme A 3-O-methyltransferase. Mol Breeding 26, 627–637 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11032-010-9399-z

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