We examined whether the expression of wheat catalase (EC 1.11.1.6) cDNA in transgenic rice (Oryza sativa L.) could enhance tolerance against low temperature injury. Transgenic rice plants expressing wheat CAT protein showed an increase of activities in leaves at 25°C, 2‐ to 5‐fold that in non‐transgenic rice. At 5°C, catalase activities were about 4–15 times higher than those in non‐transgenic rice were. A comparison of damage observed in leaves as they withered due to chilling at 5°C showed that transgenic rice displayed an increased capability to resist low temperature stress. The exposure of these plants to low temperature at 5°C for 8 days resulted in decreased catalase activities in leaves at 25°C, but the transgenic plants indicated 4 times higher residual catalase activities than those of non‐transgenic ones. The concentration of H2O2 in leaves was kept lower in transgenic rice than that of the control plants during the 8 days chilling. These results suggest that the improved tolerance against low temperature stress in genetically engineered rice plants be attributed to the effective detoxification of H2O2 by the enhanced catalase activities.
A nucleotide sequence analysis of azuki bean mosaic virus (AzMV) showed that its coat protein (CP) gene has nearly 90% amino acid sequence identity with those of bean common mosaic virus (BCMV) strains1,2). In this paper, we propose that AzMV should be treated as the azuki bean mosaic strain of BCMV (BCMV-AzM). We determined the 3•OE-terminal sequence of an isolate of BCMV-AzM from Hokkaido, Japan (BCMV-AzM-JH), and compared the CP gene and 3•OE non-coding region of this isolate with those of other viruses in the BCMV subgroup. In order to elucidate the evolutionary relationships among viruses in the BCMV subgroup, we phylogenetically analyzed their amino acid and nucleotide sequences for the CP gene and the 3•OE non-coding region.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.