Francisco Madueño - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Francisco Madueño
New Phytologist
Legumes usually have compound inflorescences, where flowers/pods develop from secondary infloresc... more Legumes usually have compound inflorescences, where flowers/pods develop from secondary inflorescences (I2), formed laterally at the primary inflorescence (I1). Number of flowers per I2, characteristic of each legume species, has important ecological and evolutionary relevance as it determines diversity in inflorescence architecture; moreover, it is also agronomically important for its potential impact on yield. Nevertheless, the genetic network controlling the number of flowers per I2 is virtually unknown. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) typically produces one flower per I2 but single flower (sfl) mutants produce two (double-pod phenotype). We isolated the SFL gene by mapping the sfl-d mutation and identifying and characterising a second mutant allele. We analysed the effect of sfl on chickpea inflorescence ontogeny with scanning electron microscopy and studied the expression of SFL and meristem identity genes by RNA in situ hybridization. We show that SFL corresponds to CaRAX1/2a, which codes a MYB transcription factor specifically expressed in the I2 meristem. Our findings reveal SFL as a central factor controlling chickpea inflorescence architecture, acting in the I2 meristem to regulate the length of the period that it remains active, and therefore determining the number of floral meristems that it can produce.
Plant physiology, Jan 6, 2017
The transcription factors LEAFY (LFY) and APETALA1 (AP1), together with the AP1 paralog CAULIFLOW... more The transcription factors LEAFY (LFY) and APETALA1 (AP1), together with the AP1 paralog CAULIFLOWER (CAL), control the onset of flower development in a partially redundant manner. This redundancy is thought to be mediated, at least in part, through the regulation of a shared set of target genes. However, whether these genes are independently or cooperatively regulated by LFY and AP1/CAL, is currently unknown. To better understand the regulatory relationship between LFY and AP1/CAL during floral initiation, we monitored the activity of LFY in the absence of AP1/CAL function. We found that the regulation of several known LFY target genes is unaffected by AP1/CAL perturbation, while others appear to require AP1/CAL activity. Furthermore, we obtained evidence that LFY and AP1/CAL control the expression of some genes in an antagonistic manner. Notably, these include key regulators of floral initiation such as TERMINAL FLOWER1 (TFL1), which had been previously reported to be directly repr...
The Plant cell, Jan 24, 2015
As knowledge of the gene networks regulating inflorescence development in Arabidopsis thaliana im... more As knowledge of the gene networks regulating inflorescence development in Arabidopsis thaliana improves, the current challenge is to characterize this system in different groups of crop species with different inflorescence architecture. Pea (Pisum sativum) has served as a model for development of the compound raceme, characteristic of many legume species, and in this study, we characterize the pea VEGETATIVE2 (VEG2) locus, showing that it is critical for regulation of flowering and inflorescence development and identifying it as a homolog of the bZIP transcription factor FD. Through detailed phenotypic characterizations of veg2 mutants, expression analyses, and the use of protein-protein interaction assays, we find that VEG2 has important roles during each stage of development of the pea compound inflorescence. Our results suggest that VEG2 acts in conjunction with multiple FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) proteins to regulate expression of downstream target genes, including TERMINAL FLOWER1,...
Agrobacterium Protocols
Page 1. CHAPTER 24 Manipulating Photosynthesis in Transgenic Plants Jacqueline S. Knight, Francis... more Page 1. CHAPTER 24 Manipulating Photosynthesis in Transgenic Plants Jacqueline S. Knight, Francisco Madueno, Simon A. Barnes, and John C. Gray 1. Introduction Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mQdiated transformation of ...
Annals of botany, 2007
A huge variety of plant forms can be found in nature. This is particularly noticeable for inflore... more A huge variety of plant forms can be found in nature. This is particularly noticeable for inflorescences, the region of the plant that contains the flowers. The architecture of the inflorescence depends on its branching pattern and on the relative position where flowers are formed. In model species such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus the key genes that regulate the initiation of flowers have been studied in detail and much is known about how they work. Studies being carried out in other species of higher plants indicate that the homologues of these genes are also key regulators of the development of their reproductive structures. Further, changes in these gene expression patterns and/or function play a crucial role in the generation of different plant architectures. In this review we aim to present a summarized view on what is known about floral initiation genes in different plants, particularly dicotyledonous species, and aim to emphasize their contribution to plant a...
The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology, 2009
The B-class gene PISTILLATA (PI) codes for a MADS-box transcription factor required for floral or... more The B-class gene PISTILLATA (PI) codes for a MADS-box transcription factor required for floral organ identity in angiosperms. Unlike Arabidopsis, it has been suggested that legume PI genes contribute to a variety of processes, such as the development of floral organs, floral common petal-stamen primordia, complex leaves and N-fixing root nodules. Another interesting feature of legume PI homologues is that some of them lack the highly conserved C-terminal PI motif suggested to be crucial for function. Therefore, legume PI genes are useful for addressing controversial questions on the evolution of B-class gene function, including how they may have diverged in both function and structure to affect different developmental processes. However, functional analysis of legume PI genes has been hampered because no mutation in any B-class gene has been identified in legumes. Here we fill this gap by studying the PI function in the model legume species Medicago truncatula using mutant and RNAi ...
Science, 2010
Flower Power The transcription factor APETALA1 (AP1) controls the transition from vegetative grow... more Flower Power The transcription factor APETALA1 (AP1) controls the transition from vegetative growth to flower production in the plant Arabidopsis . A handful of factors that control AP1 have been identified, as well as some targets that AP1 controls. Kaufmann et al. (p. 85 ) now apply genome-wide microarray analysis to identify over a thousand genes whose transcription is regulated by AP1. By proximity to AP1 binding sites, over two thousand genes are implicated as putative AP1 targets. Analysis of this network of interactions indicates that AP1 functions first to repress vegetative identity, then to help establish floral primordia, and finally to shape the differentiation of floral parts.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY, 2013
Plant leaves, simple or compound, initiate as peg-like structures from the peripheral zone of the... more Plant leaves, simple or compound, initiate as peg-like structures from the peripheral zone of the shoot apical meristem, which requires class I KNOTTED-LIKE HOMEOBOXI (KNOXI) transcription factors to maintain its activity. The MYB domain protein encoded by the ASYMMETRIC LEAVES1/ROUGH SHEATH2/PHANTASTICA (ARP) gene, together with other factors, excludes KNOXI gene expression from incipient leaf primordia to initiate leaves and specify leaf adaxial identity. However, the regulatory relationship between ARP and KNOXI is more complex in compound-leafed species. Here, we investigated the role of ARP and KNOXI genes in compound leaf development in Medicago truncatula. We show that the M. truncatula phantastica mutant exhibited severe compound leaf defects, including curling and deep serration of leaf margins, shortened petioles, increased rachises, petioles acquiring motor organ characteristics, and ectopic development of petiolules. On the other hand, the M. truncatula brevipedicellus mutant did not exhibit visible compound leaf defects. Our analyses show that the altered petiole development requires ectopic expression of ELONGATED PETIOLULE1, which encodes a lateral organ boundary domain protein, and that the distal margin serration requires the auxin efflux protein M. truncatula PIN-FORMED10 in the M. truncatula phantastica mutant.
Plant Physiology, 2006
Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has ... more Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has been produced. We use legume species to study developmental differences in inflorescence architecture and flower ontogeny with classical models such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus. Whereas genetic control of these processes has been analyzed mostly in pea (Pisum sativum), Medicago truncatula is emerging as a promising alternative system for these studies due to the availability of a range of genetic tools. To assess the use of the retrotransposon Tnt1 for reverse genetics in M. truncatula, we screened a small Tnt1-mutagenized population using degenerate primers for MADS-box genes, known controllers of plant development. We describe here the characterization of mtpim, a new mutant caused by the insertion of Tnt1 in a homolog to the PROLIFERATING INFLORESCENCE MERISTEM (PIM)/APETALA1 (AP1)/SQUAMOSA genes. mtpim shows flower-to-inflorescence conversion and altered flowers wit...
Plant Physiology, 2006
Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has ... more Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has been produced. We use legume species to study developmental differences in inflorescence architecture and flower ontogeny with classical models such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus. Whereas genetic control of these processes has been analyzed mostly in pea (Pisum sativum), Medicago truncatula is emerging as a promising alternative system for these studies due to the availability of a range of genetic tools. To assess the use of the retrotransposon Tnt1 for reverse genetics in M. truncatula, we screened a small Tnt1-mutagenized population using degenerate primers for MADS-box genes, known controllers of plant development. We describe here the characterization of mtpim, a new mutant caused by the insertion of Tnt1 in a homolog to the PROLIFERATING INFLORESCENCE MERISTEM (PIM)/APETALA1 (AP1)/SQUAMOSA genes. mtpim shows flower-to-inflorescence conversion and altered flowers wit...
Plant Molecular Biology, 2006
The formation of flowers involves the activity of a genetic network that acts in meristems to spe... more The formation of flowers involves the activity of a genetic network that acts in meristems to specify floral identity. The main output of this network is the initiation of a developmental patterning program for the generation of floral organs. The first characteristic of meristem identity genes is their capacity to integrate the environmental and endogenous cues that regulate the onset of flowering. This mechanism synchronizes temporal and spatial information, ensuring that flowers arise in the correct location at the appropriate time. The second characteristic of this network is the mutual regulatory interactions established between meristem identity genes. These interactions provide flexibility and robustness against environmental noise and prevent reversion once the decision to flower has been made. Finally, the third feature is the overlap between the meristem identity and other developmental programs that operate simultaneously to regulate different aspects of the construction of flowers.
Plant Cell Reports, 2006
Genetic engineered male sterility has different applications, ranging from hybrid seed production... more Genetic engineered male sterility has different applications, ranging from hybrid seed production to bioconfinement of transgenes in genetic modified crops. The impact of this technology is currently patent in a wide range of crops, including legumes, which has helped to deal with the challenges of global food security. Production of engineered male sterile plants by expression of a ribonuclease gene under the control of an anther-or pollen-specific promoter has proven to be an efficient way to generate pollen-free elite cultivars. In the last years, we have been studying the genetic control of flower development in legumes and several genes that are specifically expressed in a determinate floral organ were identified. Pisum sativum ENDOTHECIUM 1 (PsEND1) is a pea anther-specific gene displaying very early expression in the anther primordium cells. This expression pattern has been assessed in both model plants and crops (tomato, tobacco, oilseed rape, rice, wheat) using genetic constructs carrying the PsEND1 promoter fused to the uidA reporter gene. This promoter fused to the barnase gene produces full anther ablation at early developmental stages, preventing the production of mature pollen grains in all plant species tested. Additional effects produced by the early anther ablation in the PsEND1::barnase-barstar plants, with interesting biotechnological applications, have also been described, such as redirection of resources to increase vegetative growth, reduction of the need for deadheading to extend the flowering period, or elimination of pollen allergens in ornamental plants (Kalanchoe, Pelargonium). Moreover, early anther ablation in transgenic PsEND1::barnase-barstar tomato plants promotes the developing of the ovaries into parthenocarpic fruits due to the absence of signals generated during the fertilization process and can be considered an efficient tool to promote fruit set and to produce seedless fruits. In legumes, the production of new hybrid cultivars will contribute to enhance yield and productivity by exploiting the hybrid vigor generated. The PsEND1::barnase-barstar construct could be also useful to generate parental lines in hybrid breeding approaches to produce new cultivars in different legume species.
Nature Communications, 2012
unravelling the basis of variation in inflorescence architecture is important to understanding ho... more unravelling the basis of variation in inflorescence architecture is important to understanding how the huge diversity in plant form has been generated. Inflorescences are divided between simple, as in Arabidopsis, with flowers directly formed at the main primary inflorescence axis, and compound, as in legumes, where they are formed at secondary or even higher order axes. The formation of secondary inflorescences predicts a novel genetic function in the development of the compound inflorescences. Here we show that in pea this function is controlled by VEGETATIVE1 (VEG1), whose mutation replaces secondary inflorescences by vegetative branches. We identify VEG1 as an AGL79-like mADs-box gene that specifies secondary inflorescence meristem identity. VEG1 misexpression in meristem identity mutants causes ectopic secondary inflorescence formation, suggesting a model for compound inflorescence development based on antagonistic interactions between VEG1 and genes conferring primary inflorescence and floral identity. our study defines a novel mechanism to generate inflorescence complexity.
Molecular Biotechnology, 1996
The levels of individual photosynthetic proteins can be independendy decreased by the Agrobacteri... more The levels of individual photosynthetic proteins can be independendy decreased by the Agrobacteriummediated transformation of plants with andsense RNA constructs. ProtoCols for ~he introduction of such constructs into Agrobacterium, the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation 0f tobacco leaf disks, and the *Author to whom all correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed.
Anales de la Real …, 2009
Resumen La disponibilidad de genotipos de plantas androestériles es crucial para la obtención de ... more Resumen La disponibilidad de genotipos de plantas androestériles es crucial para la obtención de semillas híbridas y abre la posibilidad del manejo de las plantas de forma más respetuosa con el medio ambiente. Nosotros hemos desarrollado herramientas ...
New Phytologist
Legumes usually have compound inflorescences, where flowers/pods develop from secondary infloresc... more Legumes usually have compound inflorescences, where flowers/pods develop from secondary inflorescences (I2), formed laterally at the primary inflorescence (I1). Number of flowers per I2, characteristic of each legume species, has important ecological and evolutionary relevance as it determines diversity in inflorescence architecture; moreover, it is also agronomically important for its potential impact on yield. Nevertheless, the genetic network controlling the number of flowers per I2 is virtually unknown. Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) typically produces one flower per I2 but single flower (sfl) mutants produce two (double-pod phenotype). We isolated the SFL gene by mapping the sfl-d mutation and identifying and characterising a second mutant allele. We analysed the effect of sfl on chickpea inflorescence ontogeny with scanning electron microscopy and studied the expression of SFL and meristem identity genes by RNA in situ hybridization. We show that SFL corresponds to CaRAX1/2a, which codes a MYB transcription factor specifically expressed in the I2 meristem. Our findings reveal SFL as a central factor controlling chickpea inflorescence architecture, acting in the I2 meristem to regulate the length of the period that it remains active, and therefore determining the number of floral meristems that it can produce.
Plant physiology, Jan 6, 2017
The transcription factors LEAFY (LFY) and APETALA1 (AP1), together with the AP1 paralog CAULIFLOW... more The transcription factors LEAFY (LFY) and APETALA1 (AP1), together with the AP1 paralog CAULIFLOWER (CAL), control the onset of flower development in a partially redundant manner. This redundancy is thought to be mediated, at least in part, through the regulation of a shared set of target genes. However, whether these genes are independently or cooperatively regulated by LFY and AP1/CAL, is currently unknown. To better understand the regulatory relationship between LFY and AP1/CAL during floral initiation, we monitored the activity of LFY in the absence of AP1/CAL function. We found that the regulation of several known LFY target genes is unaffected by AP1/CAL perturbation, while others appear to require AP1/CAL activity. Furthermore, we obtained evidence that LFY and AP1/CAL control the expression of some genes in an antagonistic manner. Notably, these include key regulators of floral initiation such as TERMINAL FLOWER1 (TFL1), which had been previously reported to be directly repr...
The Plant cell, Jan 24, 2015
As knowledge of the gene networks regulating inflorescence development in Arabidopsis thaliana im... more As knowledge of the gene networks regulating inflorescence development in Arabidopsis thaliana improves, the current challenge is to characterize this system in different groups of crop species with different inflorescence architecture. Pea (Pisum sativum) has served as a model for development of the compound raceme, characteristic of many legume species, and in this study, we characterize the pea VEGETATIVE2 (VEG2) locus, showing that it is critical for regulation of flowering and inflorescence development and identifying it as a homolog of the bZIP transcription factor FD. Through detailed phenotypic characterizations of veg2 mutants, expression analyses, and the use of protein-protein interaction assays, we find that VEG2 has important roles during each stage of development of the pea compound inflorescence. Our results suggest that VEG2 acts in conjunction with multiple FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) proteins to regulate expression of downstream target genes, including TERMINAL FLOWER1,...
Agrobacterium Protocols
Page 1. CHAPTER 24 Manipulating Photosynthesis in Transgenic Plants Jacqueline S. Knight, Francis... more Page 1. CHAPTER 24 Manipulating Photosynthesis in Transgenic Plants Jacqueline S. Knight, Francisco Madueno, Simon A. Barnes, and John C. Gray 1. Introduction Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mQdiated transformation of ...
Annals of botany, 2007
A huge variety of plant forms can be found in nature. This is particularly noticeable for inflore... more A huge variety of plant forms can be found in nature. This is particularly noticeable for inflorescences, the region of the plant that contains the flowers. The architecture of the inflorescence depends on its branching pattern and on the relative position where flowers are formed. In model species such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus the key genes that regulate the initiation of flowers have been studied in detail and much is known about how they work. Studies being carried out in other species of higher plants indicate that the homologues of these genes are also key regulators of the development of their reproductive structures. Further, changes in these gene expression patterns and/or function play a crucial role in the generation of different plant architectures. In this review we aim to present a summarized view on what is known about floral initiation genes in different plants, particularly dicotyledonous species, and aim to emphasize their contribution to plant a...
The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology, 2009
The B-class gene PISTILLATA (PI) codes for a MADS-box transcription factor required for floral or... more The B-class gene PISTILLATA (PI) codes for a MADS-box transcription factor required for floral organ identity in angiosperms. Unlike Arabidopsis, it has been suggested that legume PI genes contribute to a variety of processes, such as the development of floral organs, floral common petal-stamen primordia, complex leaves and N-fixing root nodules. Another interesting feature of legume PI homologues is that some of them lack the highly conserved C-terminal PI motif suggested to be crucial for function. Therefore, legume PI genes are useful for addressing controversial questions on the evolution of B-class gene function, including how they may have diverged in both function and structure to affect different developmental processes. However, functional analysis of legume PI genes has been hampered because no mutation in any B-class gene has been identified in legumes. Here we fill this gap by studying the PI function in the model legume species Medicago truncatula using mutant and RNAi ...
Science, 2010
Flower Power The transcription factor APETALA1 (AP1) controls the transition from vegetative grow... more Flower Power The transcription factor APETALA1 (AP1) controls the transition from vegetative growth to flower production in the plant Arabidopsis . A handful of factors that control AP1 have been identified, as well as some targets that AP1 controls. Kaufmann et al. (p. 85 ) now apply genome-wide microarray analysis to identify over a thousand genes whose transcription is regulated by AP1. By proximity to AP1 binding sites, over two thousand genes are implicated as putative AP1 targets. Analysis of this network of interactions indicates that AP1 functions first to repress vegetative identity, then to help establish floral primordia, and finally to shape the differentiation of floral parts.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY, 2013
Plant leaves, simple or compound, initiate as peg-like structures from the peripheral zone of the... more Plant leaves, simple or compound, initiate as peg-like structures from the peripheral zone of the shoot apical meristem, which requires class I KNOTTED-LIKE HOMEOBOXI (KNOXI) transcription factors to maintain its activity. The MYB domain protein encoded by the ASYMMETRIC LEAVES1/ROUGH SHEATH2/PHANTASTICA (ARP) gene, together with other factors, excludes KNOXI gene expression from incipient leaf primordia to initiate leaves and specify leaf adaxial identity. However, the regulatory relationship between ARP and KNOXI is more complex in compound-leafed species. Here, we investigated the role of ARP and KNOXI genes in compound leaf development in Medicago truncatula. We show that the M. truncatula phantastica mutant exhibited severe compound leaf defects, including curling and deep serration of leaf margins, shortened petioles, increased rachises, petioles acquiring motor organ characteristics, and ectopic development of petiolules. On the other hand, the M. truncatula brevipedicellus mutant did not exhibit visible compound leaf defects. Our analyses show that the altered petiole development requires ectopic expression of ELONGATED PETIOLULE1, which encodes a lateral organ boundary domain protein, and that the distal margin serration requires the auxin efflux protein M. truncatula PIN-FORMED10 in the M. truncatula phantastica mutant.
Plant Physiology, 2006
Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has ... more Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has been produced. We use legume species to study developmental differences in inflorescence architecture and flower ontogeny with classical models such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus. Whereas genetic control of these processes has been analyzed mostly in pea (Pisum sativum), Medicago truncatula is emerging as a promising alternative system for these studies due to the availability of a range of genetic tools. To assess the use of the retrotransposon Tnt1 for reverse genetics in M. truncatula, we screened a small Tnt1-mutagenized population using degenerate primers for MADS-box genes, known controllers of plant development. We describe here the characterization of mtpim, a new mutant caused by the insertion of Tnt1 in a homolog to the PROLIFERATING INFLORESCENCE MERISTEM (PIM)/APETALA1 (AP1)/SQUAMOSA genes. mtpim shows flower-to-inflorescence conversion and altered flowers wit...
Plant Physiology, 2006
Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has ... more Comparative studies help shed light on how the huge diversity in plant forms found in nature has been produced. We use legume species to study developmental differences in inflorescence architecture and flower ontogeny with classical models such as Arabidopsis thaliana or Antirrhinum majus. Whereas genetic control of these processes has been analyzed mostly in pea (Pisum sativum), Medicago truncatula is emerging as a promising alternative system for these studies due to the availability of a range of genetic tools. To assess the use of the retrotransposon Tnt1 for reverse genetics in M. truncatula, we screened a small Tnt1-mutagenized population using degenerate primers for MADS-box genes, known controllers of plant development. We describe here the characterization of mtpim, a new mutant caused by the insertion of Tnt1 in a homolog to the PROLIFERATING INFLORESCENCE MERISTEM (PIM)/APETALA1 (AP1)/SQUAMOSA genes. mtpim shows flower-to-inflorescence conversion and altered flowers wit...
Plant Molecular Biology, 2006
The formation of flowers involves the activity of a genetic network that acts in meristems to spe... more The formation of flowers involves the activity of a genetic network that acts in meristems to specify floral identity. The main output of this network is the initiation of a developmental patterning program for the generation of floral organs. The first characteristic of meristem identity genes is their capacity to integrate the environmental and endogenous cues that regulate the onset of flowering. This mechanism synchronizes temporal and spatial information, ensuring that flowers arise in the correct location at the appropriate time. The second characteristic of this network is the mutual regulatory interactions established between meristem identity genes. These interactions provide flexibility and robustness against environmental noise and prevent reversion once the decision to flower has been made. Finally, the third feature is the overlap between the meristem identity and other developmental programs that operate simultaneously to regulate different aspects of the construction of flowers.
Plant Cell Reports, 2006
Genetic engineered male sterility has different applications, ranging from hybrid seed production... more Genetic engineered male sterility has different applications, ranging from hybrid seed production to bioconfinement of transgenes in genetic modified crops. The impact of this technology is currently patent in a wide range of crops, including legumes, which has helped to deal with the challenges of global food security. Production of engineered male sterile plants by expression of a ribonuclease gene under the control of an anther-or pollen-specific promoter has proven to be an efficient way to generate pollen-free elite cultivars. In the last years, we have been studying the genetic control of flower development in legumes and several genes that are specifically expressed in a determinate floral organ were identified. Pisum sativum ENDOTHECIUM 1 (PsEND1) is a pea anther-specific gene displaying very early expression in the anther primordium cells. This expression pattern has been assessed in both model plants and crops (tomato, tobacco, oilseed rape, rice, wheat) using genetic constructs carrying the PsEND1 promoter fused to the uidA reporter gene. This promoter fused to the barnase gene produces full anther ablation at early developmental stages, preventing the production of mature pollen grains in all plant species tested. Additional effects produced by the early anther ablation in the PsEND1::barnase-barstar plants, with interesting biotechnological applications, have also been described, such as redirection of resources to increase vegetative growth, reduction of the need for deadheading to extend the flowering period, or elimination of pollen allergens in ornamental plants (Kalanchoe, Pelargonium). Moreover, early anther ablation in transgenic PsEND1::barnase-barstar tomato plants promotes the developing of the ovaries into parthenocarpic fruits due to the absence of signals generated during the fertilization process and can be considered an efficient tool to promote fruit set and to produce seedless fruits. In legumes, the production of new hybrid cultivars will contribute to enhance yield and productivity by exploiting the hybrid vigor generated. The PsEND1::barnase-barstar construct could be also useful to generate parental lines in hybrid breeding approaches to produce new cultivars in different legume species.
Nature Communications, 2012
unravelling the basis of variation in inflorescence architecture is important to understanding ho... more unravelling the basis of variation in inflorescence architecture is important to understanding how the huge diversity in plant form has been generated. Inflorescences are divided between simple, as in Arabidopsis, with flowers directly formed at the main primary inflorescence axis, and compound, as in legumes, where they are formed at secondary or even higher order axes. The formation of secondary inflorescences predicts a novel genetic function in the development of the compound inflorescences. Here we show that in pea this function is controlled by VEGETATIVE1 (VEG1), whose mutation replaces secondary inflorescences by vegetative branches. We identify VEG1 as an AGL79-like mADs-box gene that specifies secondary inflorescence meristem identity. VEG1 misexpression in meristem identity mutants causes ectopic secondary inflorescence formation, suggesting a model for compound inflorescence development based on antagonistic interactions between VEG1 and genes conferring primary inflorescence and floral identity. our study defines a novel mechanism to generate inflorescence complexity.
Molecular Biotechnology, 1996
The levels of individual photosynthetic proteins can be independendy decreased by the Agrobacteri... more The levels of individual photosynthetic proteins can be independendy decreased by the Agrobacteriummediated transformation of plants with andsense RNA constructs. ProtoCols for ~he introduction of such constructs into Agrobacterium, the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation 0f tobacco leaf disks, and the *Author to whom all correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed.
Anales de la Real …, 2009
Resumen La disponibilidad de genotipos de plantas androestériles es crucial para la obtención de ... more Resumen La disponibilidad de genotipos de plantas androestériles es crucial para la obtención de semillas híbridas y abre la posibilidad del manejo de las plantas de forma más respetuosa con el medio ambiente. Nosotros hemos desarrollado herramientas ...