JP2006325588A - Method for producing plant modified to induce dedifferentiation, plant obtained thereby and use thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for producing a plant modified to induce dedifferentiation (callus formation). <P>SOLUTION: A plant modified to induce dedifferentiation is produced by introducing a recombinant expression vector containing a gene encoding a transcription factor controlled in a DST-dependent mRNA degradation pathway and participating in dedifferentiation into a plant cell and producing the transcription factor in the plant cell. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing a plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation, a plant obtained using the plant, and use thereof.

  Plants have totipotency, can form callus from highly differentiated somatic cells (dedifferentiation), and if callus is cultured under certain conditions, it undergoes somatic embryos, adventitious buds and adventitious root differentiation The plant can be regenerated. Callus culture is 1) has infinite growth ability, 2) can be differentiated from a cell mass of callus into various tissues and individuals, and 3) proliferate cells that are difficult to obtain in plants can be obtained uniformly and in large quantities. 4 It is suitable as an experimental material because there is no seasonal variation in cell quality or quantity. 5) The effects of substances added to the medium can be directly seen on the plant. It is excellent in that it is easy to induce mutation and can be used for breeding. Therefore, callus culture is widely used for production of useful substances, development of new varieties, gene transfer to plant bodies and regeneration of transformants, production of artificial seeds, and the like.

  Generally, plant differentiation / dedifferentiation can be controlled by the composition of plant hormones such as auxin and cytokinin and the amount added to the medium. In general, adventitious root formation (differentiation) when the ratio of auxin given to the medium is high, adventitious bud formation (differentiation) when the ratio of cytokinin is high, callus (dedifferentiation) is maintained at an appropriate ratio of both. It is known that

  In addition, it is known that induction of dedifferentiation (callusification) occurs at a low frequency not only by plant hormones but also by viral and bacterial infections and injury (including UV, X-rays, physical injury, etc.). Yes.

  For example, the production of crown gall by infection with Agrobacterium tumefaciens is known as one caused by bacterial infection. This is because both plant hormones are produced in the plant cells infected by the expression of the auxin synthesis gene and the cytokinin synthesis gene contained in the T-DNA region in the Ti plasmid, and tumor cells (callus) are generated in the plant tissue. . The resulting callus can be cultured without external addition of plant hormones (plant hormone-free).

  In addition, it is known that dedifferentiation is also caused by viruses. Inoculation of a tumor virus (Aureogenus magnivena) having double-stranded RNA into a cleaved part of clovers (Trifolium) or Himeiba (Rumex acetosella) results in leaf deformities and root tumors. This viral tumor, unlike the animal RNA tumor virus, does not transform the host.

  In addition, genetic tumors that are not found in the parent plant but are found only in a specific combination of interspecific hybrids are known. This genetic tumor has been reported to occur in the genera Brassica, Datura, Lilium, and Nicotiana. The resulting tumor cells grow autonomously against auxin. Studies from the Nicotiana genus indicate that incompatibility between genomes and specific chromosomal functions combine to cause tumor formation. Genetic tumor formation is induced by external stress (injury, X-rays, mechanical stimulation, chemicals, etc.) as well as internal stress (formation of lateral roots, reduced apical dominance, leaf loss, dense planting, etc.) Is done.

  Furthermore, several examples have been reported in which dedifferentiation of plant cells is induced and promoted by genetic recombination techniques. These are examples in which dedifferentiation was accidentally induced and promoted mainly from the analysis of genes involved in the plant hormone response mechanism, both of which are caused by amplification of the response pathway to plant hormones Conceivable. However, these reports do not mention whether the resulting dedifferentiated cells can be passaged.

  An ESR1 (Enhancer of Shoot Regeneration) gene has been isolated by functional screening of Arabidopsis cDNA (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). The ESR1 gene is obtained by transforming a cDNA library into root pieces using Agrobacterium, and forming shoots or green callus in a cytokinin-free foliage induction medium (containing auxin) containing antibiotics as selection markers Isolated. When this gene is expressed in root explants, it differentiates shoots independently of cytokinin. In addition, shoot formation is promoted even at low cytokinin concentrations. When a plant body overexpressing the ESR1 gene (35S: ESR1 plant body) is cultured in MS medium (plant hormone-free), normal development is not observed and dark green callus is formed around the shoot apical meristem .

  There is also a report on ARR1 (Arabidopsis Response Regulator1) protein, which is a transcription factor responsible for transcriptional activation of the first response gene to cytokinin (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 2). This ARR1 protein belongs to the Arabidopsis type B response regulator. In a green callus induction experiment using hypocotyl fragments, it has been reported that a loss-of-function mutant has a decreased sensitivity to cytokinin, whereas an overexpressing mutant has an increased sensitivity. Plants in which a protein lacking the phosphate receiver domain of the ARR1 protein is overexpressed show significant morphological changes such as ectopic shoot formation from cotyledons and callus formation on the shoot apex.

Furthermore, E2Fa proteins have been reported for a transcription factor that controls the transition to S phase G ₁ phase in the cell cycle (e.g., Non-Patent Document 3, etc. refer.). When the E2Fa protein becomes an E2Fa-DPa complex, sequence-specific binding with higher affinity to DNA becomes possible. When Arabidopsis E2Fa and DPa are overexpressed in tobacco, cell division is promoted and endoreduplication occurs. In addition, it has been reported that callus derived from leaf pieces in a callus induction medium continues to grow for a while even in a medium not containing plant hormones. Further, even in a plant hormone composition medium for differentiating shoots, differentiation into shoots is not observed, and the state of embryonic callus is maintained.

In addition, RAP 2.4 protein is known to be a protein belonging to the RAP2 protein family (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 4). This RAP2.4 protein has been reported to be expressed in wild-type (Ler) flowers, leaves, stems and roots, like other RAP2 family proteins. In addition, basic experiments by the present inventors have revealed that the gene is a transcriptional activator gene whose expression is increased in a plurality of callus strains as compared to a plant body. However, little is known about the function of this protein.
Banno H, Ikeda Y, Niu QW, Chua, NH (2001) Overexpression of Arabidopsis ESR1 induces initiation of shoot regeneration.Plant Cell.13: 2609-2618 Sakai H, Honma T, Aoyama T, Sato S, Kato T, Tabata S, Oka A (2001) ARR1, a transcription factor for genes immediately responsive to Cytokinins. Science. 294: 1519-1521 Kosugi S, Ohashi Y (2003) Constitutive E2F expression in tobacco plants exhibits altered cell cycle control and morphological change in a cell type-specific manner.Plant Physiol. 132: 2012-2022 Okamuro JK, Caster B, Villarroel R, Van Montagu M, Jofuku KD (2001) The AP2 domain of APETALA2 defines a large new family of DNA binding proteins in Arabidopsis.Proc Natl Acad Sci US A. 94: 7076-7081

  As described above, various methods of dedifferentiation (callusification) have been known, but there are many plants that cannot induce callus by conventional methods, and it is possible to induce callus even for plants that are difficult to dedifferentiate. In addition, it is desired to develop a callus induction method different from the conventional method. In addition, there have been many studies on the production of useful substances using callus with infinite growth ability, but there are only a few examples of industrialization due to the instability of the useful substance production ability of callus. Development of a useful substance production method using callus having different stable useful substance producing ability is desired.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a plant that has been modified so that dedifferentiation is induced so that callus can be induced even in plants that are difficult to dedifferentiate. Another object of the present invention is to provide a stable useful substance production method using a plant body modified so that dedifferentiation is induced.

  As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventor has found a transcription factor whose expression has been promoted in a plurality of callus strains compared to a plant, and whose function has not been clarified. When the encoded gene is connected to a promoter that functions in the plant body and introduced into the plant body, the resulting plant body is capable of normal differentiation of organs such as stems, leaves, and roots even in the absence of plant hormones. It was found to be suppressed and callus-like. In the present specification, “in the absence of plant hormones” has the same meaning as “without plant hormones” unless otherwise specified. Further, the obtained callus cells proliferated even in a medium not containing plant hormones, and it was found that subculture can be performed while maintaining a dedifferentiated state. Based on these findings, it was first discovered that such transcription factors are transcription factors involved in dedifferentiation, and plants that have been modified to induce dedifferentiation by using genes encoding these transcription factors. The present inventors have found that the body can be produced and have completed the present invention.

That is, the method for producing a plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention includes the gene so that the gene described in any of the following (a) to (e) is expressed. It includes a transformation step of introducing a recombinant expression vector into plant cells.
(A) a gene encoding a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation,
(B) a gene encoding a protein consisting of the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5;
(C) In the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5, it consists of an amino acid sequence in which one or several amino acids are substituted, deleted, inserted, and / or added, and is involved in dedifferentiation A gene encoding a protein,
(D) a gene having the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 as an open reading frame region,
(E) a base sequence that hybridizes under stringent conditions with a gene consisting of a base sequence complementary to the gene consisting of the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 as an open reading frame region; A gene that encodes a protein involved in differentiation.

  The plant production method according to the present invention may further include an expression vector construction step for constructing the recombinant expression vector.

  In addition, the plant according to the present invention is produced by the production method described above, and is modified so as to induce dedifferentiation.

  In the plant according to the present invention, it is preferable that the concentration of endogenous auxin in the plant is not significantly increased as compared to before the modification so that dedifferentiation is induced.

  The plant body preferably contains at least one of a grown plant individual, plant tissue, plant cell, callus, and seed.

  The plant body may be a callus that can be grown in a state where the surface is partially formed and the surface is partially formed by controlling the callus culture conditions. Furthermore, the plant body is a callus obtained by culturing a plant body obtained using a drug resistance gene as a selection marker in the transformation step without adding an antibiotic which is a reagent for the selection marker. There may be.

  A plant dedifferentiation induction kit according to the present invention is a kit for performing the production method described above, and a set comprising the gene according to any one of (a) to (e) above and a promoter. It is characterized by comprising at least a recombinant expression vector.

  The plant dedifferentiation induction kit may further include a reagent group for introducing the recombinant expression vector into plant cells.

  The useful substance production method according to the present invention is characterized in that the plant according to the present invention is cultured without the addition of plant hormones to produce secondary metabolites.

  In addition, the method for producing a useful substance according to the present invention includes a callus that grows in a state where the surface is partially formed and the surface is partially formed, or a plant obtained using a drug resistance gene as a selection marker in the transformation step. Callus obtained by culturing the body without the addition of antibiotics, which are reagents for the selection marker, is cultured without the addition of antibiotics and plant hormones, which are the reagents for the selection markers, to produce secondary metabolites It is also possible to use a method.

  That is, the production method of a plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention is such that the gene according to any one of the above (a) to (e) is expressed as described above. It includes a transformation step of introducing a recombinant expression vector containing the gene into a plant cell. Thereby, even in the absence of plant hormones, the obtained plant body is suppressed to normal differentiation of organs such as stems, leaves, roots, and becomes callus-like. In addition, the obtained callus cells grow in a medium not containing plant hormones and can be subcultured while maintaining a dedifferentiated state. In particular, the plant obtained by such a method has an effect of being modified so as to induce dedifferentiation.

  The production method of a plant according to the present invention, the plant and its use are described as follows.

  As described above, the present inventors have added a vector containing a gene encoding a transcription factor whose expression has been promoted in a plurality of callus strains to a plant body so that the gene is expressed in the plant body. It has been found that a plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation can be produced by introduction. Further, from this finding, it has been found for the first time that the above transcription factor is a transcription factor that is involved in dedifferentiation and induces dedifferentiation. Therefore, by introducing a vector containing a gene encoding a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation into a plant, a plant that has been modified so that dedifferentiation is induced can be produced.

  That is, the method for producing a plant according to the present invention may be any method that introduces a vector containing a gene encoding a transcription factor involved in this dedifferentiation into plant cells. Thereby, the transcription factor involved in this dedifferentiation is excessively produced in the plant body.

  In plants obtained by excessive production of such transcription factors in plants, it is considered that transcription of the target gene of the above transcription factor is promoted, and a plant modified to induce dedifferentiation is produced. can do. As a result, the obtained plant can be modified so that dedifferentiation is induced.

  It can also be said that the plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation produced by the production method of the present invention is a plant body modified so that differentiation is suppressed. Further, “modified” means modified compared to before transformation.

  Here, the differentiation of a plant body means that one simple system or cell population is divided into two or more heterogeneous systems or cell populations. For example, differentiation of somatic embryos from epidermal cells and callus of plant bodies is known, and cotyledons, apical buds, radicles, etc. are regenerated from these somatic embryos. Further, dedifferentiation means that cells of differentiated tissues and organs return to a more undifferentiated state again, and is a process opposite to differentiation. In other words, it refers to a phenomenon in which cells that have undergone functional or morphological differentiation such as organs and tissues start dividing and callus.

  In addition, a plant that has been modified to induce dedifferentiation (that is, a plant that has been modified so that differentiation is suppressed) is, in other words, modified so that it can be easily dedifferentiated (difficult to differentiate). Refers to the plant that has been made. Such a plant body may be a plant body that has been dedifferentiated or modified to have a low level of differentiation even in the absence of plant hormones such as auxin and cytokinin, usually under non-dedifferentiation conditions. it can. It can also be said that such a plant body is a plant body modified so as to be highly sensitive to plant hormones such as auxin and cytokinin. Here, the plant hormone is not limited to auxin or cytokinin as long as it can be used to control the dedifferentiation of plants, but gibberellin, ethylene, abscisic acid, jasmonic acid, brassinosteroid Etc. are also included.

  Usually, in order to induce and maintain callus (subculture), it is necessary to add auxin among the above plant hormones to the medium. However, plants modified to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention do not require exogenous plant hormones for induction and maintenance. That is, in the plant of the present invention, callus can be induced and maintained in the absence of a plant hormone.

  Here, exogenous plant hormones refer to plant hormones added to the medium. On the other hand, plant hormones produced inside plants are called endogenous plant hormones.

  Conventionally, crown gall is known as a callus that does not require an exogenous plant hormone for induction and maintenance. In addition, exogenous plant hormones are no longer required for maintenance in callus that have been adapted. It has been reported so far that the concentration of auxin, an endogenous plant hormone, is high as the cause.

  Therefore, it was expected that the endogenous auxin concentration was also increased in the plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention. For this reason, the present inventors have developed a plant production method according to the present invention by introducing a plant into which a chimeric gene in which a β-glucuronidase (GUS) gene is linked as a reporter gene to a promoter in which an auxin response element is arranged. It was modified to induce dedifferentiation and examined whether endogenous plant hormones were overproduced. As a result, it was surprisingly found that auxin was not excessively produced in the plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention. Further, the endogenous auxin (indoleacetic acid) concentration of a plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention using GC-MS is also compared with that of a vector control plant. Was found to have similar or rather low auxin concentrations.

  In the plant body modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention, the endogenous auxin concentration in the plant body is thus compared with that before the modification so that dedifferentiation is induced. It is preferred that it does not increase significantly. Here, “not significantly increased” means that it has not increased to such an extent as to affect the morphology and metabolism of the plant body due to gene mutation or chromosomal loss due to the action of auxin. The amount of increase is preferably 50% or less, more preferably 30% or less, and more preferably 20% or less with respect to the concentration of auxin before being modified so as to induce dedifferentiation. More preferably, it is particularly preferably 10% or less. In other words, in a plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention, it is preferable that endogenous auxin is not excessively produced in the plant. Moreover, it is more preferable that the concentration of endogenous auxin in the plant body is the same or decreased as compared with that before being modified so that dedifferentiation is induced.

  In the application of callus culture to the production of useful substances, one of the major reasons why callus, a plant cell culture, loses the ability to produce useful substances is involved in gene mutations and chromosome defects due to the action of exogenous auxins. It is well known that Callus induced in a plant modified so that dedifferentiation is induced by the production method of the plant according to the present invention does not require the addition of exogenous auxin having such action, Chromosome defects are unlikely to occur. In addition, since endogenous auxin does not increase excessively, it is considered that inactivation of the same gene by excessive endogenous auxin hardly occurs. Therefore, it is considered that the plant according to the present invention can be suitably used for production of useful substances.

  In the following description, a method for producing a plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention, a plant obtained by these production methods, its usefulness, and its use will be described.

(I) Method for producing plant body modified to induce dedifferentiation As described above, the method for producing a plant body according to the present invention comprises a vector containing a gene encoding a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation. Introduce into plant cells. Hereinafter, (I-1) a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation, (I-2) an example of a plant production method according to the present invention will be described in this order.

(I-1) Transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation The transcription factor used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation. Such transcription factors are widely conserved in the plant kingdom. Therefore, transcription factors used in the present invention include transcription factors having similar functions that are conserved in various plants.

  Representative examples of transcription factors used in the present invention include, for example, Arabidopsis RAP 2.4 protein (MIPS (Munich Information Center for Protein Sequence) No: At1g78080) and homologs thereof such as At1g22190 protein and At1g36060 protein. Can be mentioned. The RAP 2.4 protein is a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1. The At1g22190 protein is a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 3. The At1g36060 protein is a protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 5.

  The transcription factor used in the present invention is not limited to the RAP 2.4 protein, At1g22190 protein, or At1g36060 protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5, respectively. It may be a protein variant consisting of the amino acid sequence shown in 3 or 5, and may be a protein involved in dedifferentiation. Such variants can include variants containing deletions, insertions, inversions, repeats, and substitutions. In particular, “neutral” amino acid substitutions in a protein generally have little effect on the activity of the protein.

  It is well known in the art that some amino acids in the amino acid sequence of a protein can be easily modified without significantly affecting the structure or function of the protein. Furthermore, it is also well known that there are mutants in natural proteins that do not change artificially, but do not significantly alter the structure or function of the protein.

  One skilled in the art can readily mutate one or more amino acids in the amino acid sequence of a protein using well-known techniques. For example, according to a known point mutation introduction method, an arbitrary base of a polynucleotide encoding a polypeptide can be mutated. In addition, a deletion mutant or an addition mutant can be prepared by designing a primer corresponding to an arbitrary site of a polynucleotide encoding a protein.

  The mutant is not particularly limited, but is preferably a mutation that does not change the activity of the protein. Specific examples include silent mutation and conservative substitution.

  Typical conservative substitutions are substitutions of one amino acid for another in the aliphatic amino acids Ala, Val, Leu, and Ile; exchange of hydroxyl residues Ser and Thr, acidic residues Asp and Glu exchange, substitution between amide residues Asn and Gln, exchange of basic residues Lys and Arg, and substitution between aromatic residues Phe and Tyr. Silent substitution is a mutation that does not affect protein activity even if an amino acid is substituted, added, or deleted.

  As detailed above, further guidance on which amino acid changes are likely to be phenotypically silent (ie likely not to have a significantly detrimental effect on function) can be found in Bowie, JU "Deciphering the Message in Protein Sequences: Tolerance to Amino Acid Substitutions", Science 247: 1306-1310 (1990) (incorporated herein by reference).

  The transcription factor is a protein involved in dedifferentiation, and in the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3 or 5, one or several amino acids are substituted, deleted, inserted, and / or added. It may be an amino acid sequence.

  In addition, “one or several amino acids in the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 1, 3 or 5 in which one or several amino acids are substituted, deleted, inserted and / or added” ”Is not particularly limited, but means, for example, 1 to 20, preferably 1 to 10, more preferably 1 to 7, more preferably 1 to 5, and particularly preferably 1 to 3 To do.

  The transcription factor includes a protein that has an amino acid sequence having an amino acid sequence of 70% or more, preferably 90% or more, and that is involved in dedifferentiation with the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5. It is. The homology of the amino acid sequence in such a protein may be 70% or more, preferably 90% or more, more preferably 95% or more, still more preferably 98% or more, and particularly preferably 99% or more.

  The “homology” in the present specification refers to a value obtained by a BLAST (Basic local alignment search tool; Altschul, SF et al, J. Mol. Biol., 215, 403-410, 1990) search. It is meant that amino acid sequence homology can be determined by a BLAST search algorithm. Specifically, the bl2seq program (Tatiana A. Tatusova and Thomas L. Madden, FEMS Microbiol. Lett., 174, 247-250, 1999) in the BLAST package (sgi32bit version, ver. 2.0.12; obtained from NCBI) Used and can be calculated according to the default parameters. The program name “blastp” is used as the pairwise alignment parameter, the Gap insertion cost value is “0”, the Gap extension Cost value is “0”, the query sequence filter is “SEG”, and the matrix is “BLOSUM62”. Are used respectively.

  In addition, the amino acid sequences of transcription factors involved in dedifferentiation used in the present invention are considered to be highly conserved among many plants of different species. Therefore, it is not always necessary to isolate a transcription factor and its gene involved in dedifferentiation in individual plants that are desired to induce dedifferentiation. In other words, by expressing the above-mentioned transcription factor derived from Arabidopsis thaliana in other plants, which will be described later in Examples, it is possible to produce a plant body modified so that dedifferentiation can be easily induced in various types of plants. Is expected.

  In producing the transcription factor used in the present invention, a known gene recombination technique can be suitably used as described later. Therefore, in the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, a gene encoding the above transcription factor can also be suitably used.

  The gene encoding the above transcription factor is not particularly limited. For example, when a RAP 2.4 protein is used as a transcription factor, for example, a gene encoding this RAP 2.4 protein ( In the case of using At1g22190 protein as a transcription factor for convenience of explanation), the gene encoding this At1g22190 protein (referred to as At1g22190 gene for convenience of explanation) is used as At1g36060 protein as a transcription factor. In some cases, a gene encoding the At1g36060 protein (referred to as At1g36060 gene for convenience of description) can be mentioned. Specific examples of the RAP 2.4 protein, At1g22190 protein, or At1g36060 protein can include, for example, a polynucleotide containing the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 as an open reading frame (ORF). .

  Of course, the gene encoding the transcription factor used in the present invention is not limited to the above example, and may be a gene having homology with the nucleotide sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6. . Specifically, for example, a gene that hybridizes under stringent conditions with a gene consisting of a base sequence complementary to the gene consisting of the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 and which encodes the above transcription factor Etc. Here, hybridizing under stringent conditions means binding at 60 ° C. under 2 × SSC washing conditions.

  The hybridization can be performed by a conventionally known method such as the method described in J. Sambrook et al. Molecular Cloning, A Laboratory Manual, 2nd Ed., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (1989). Usually, the higher the temperature and the lower the salt concentration, the higher the stringency (harder to hybridize).

  The gene encoding the transcription factor used in the present invention may be a mutant of the gene encoding the transcription factor. Variants can occur naturally, such as a natural allelic variant. By “allelic variant” is intended one of several interchangeable forms of a gene occupying a given locus on the chromosome of an organism. Non-naturally occurring variants can be generated, for example, using mutagenesis techniques well known in the art. Such a mutant is not particularly limited, but is preferably a mutation that does not change the activity of the encoded protein.

  Examples of such a mutant include a mutant in which one or more bases are deleted, substituted, or added in the base sequence of the polynucleotide encoding the transcription factor. Variants can be mutated in coding or non-coding regions, or both. Mutations in the coding region can generate conservative or non-conservative amino acid deletions, substitutions, or additions.

  The method for obtaining the gene encoding the transcription factor is not particularly limited, and it can be isolated from many plants by a conventionally known method. For example, a primer pair prepared based on the base sequence of a gene encoding a known transcription factor can be used. Using this primer pair, the gene can be obtained by PCR using plant cDNA or genomic DNA as a template. The gene encoding the transcription factor can also be obtained by chemical synthesis by a conventionally known method.

  In the present invention, if the gene encoding the transcription factor is used, the transcription factor can be excessively produced in the plant body. Specifically, a gene encoding the transcription factor is introduced into a plant so that the gene is expressed. Thereby, the transcription factor can be produced excessively. Excessive production means that the expression level of the transcription factor is increased by introducing and expressing an exogenous gene encoding the transcription factor as compared to the case where no exogenous gene is introduced. That's fine.

(I-2) An example of a method for producing a plant according to the present invention The method for producing a plant according to the present invention includes a process of excessively producing the transcription factor described in (I-1) above in a plant. Although it is not particularly limited as long as the production method of the plant according to the present invention is shown in specific steps, for example, as a production method including steps such as an expression vector construction step, a transformation step, and a selection step Can be mentioned. Among these, in the present invention, at least the transformation step may be included. Hereinafter, each step will be specifically described.

(I-2-1) Expression vector construction step The expression vector construction step performed in the present invention constructs a recombinant expression vector comprising a gene encoding the transcription factor described in (I-1) above and a promoter. If it is a process, it will not specifically limit.

  Various vectors known in the art can be used as the parent vector of the recombinant expression vector. For example, a plasmid, phage, cosmid or the like can be used, and can be appropriately selected according to the plant cell to be introduced and the introduction method. Specific examples include pBR322, pBR325, pUC19, pUC119, pBluescript, pBluescriptSK, and pBI vectors. In particular, when the method for introducing a vector into a plant is a method using Agrobacterium, it is preferable to use a pBI binary vector. Specific examples of the pBI binary vector include pBIG, pBIN19, pBI101, pBI121, and pBI221.

  The promoter is not particularly limited as long as it is a promoter capable of expressing a gene in a plant body, and a known promoter can be suitably used. Examples of such promoters include cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter (CaMV35S), actin promoter, nopaline synthase promoter, tobacco PR1a gene promoter, tomato ribulose 1,5-diphosphate carboxylase oxidase small subunit promoter and the like. Can be mentioned. Among these, cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter or actin promoter can be used more preferably. When each of the above promoters is used, the resulting recombinant expression vector can strongly express any gene when introduced into a plant cell.

  The promoter may be linked so that a gene encoding a transcription factor can be expressed and introduced into the vector, and the specific structure as a recombinant expression vector is not particularly limited.

  The recombinant expression vector may further contain other DNA segments in addition to the promoter and the gene encoding the transcription factor. The other DNA segment is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a terminator, a selection marker, an enhancer, and a base sequence for improving translation efficiency. The recombinant expression vector may further have a T-DNA region. The T-DNA region can increase the efficiency of gene transfer particularly when Agrobacterium is used to introduce the recombinant expression vector into a plant body.

  The terminator is not particularly limited as long as it has a function as a transcription termination site, and may be a known one. For example, specifically, the transcription termination region (Nos terminator) of the nopaline synthase gene, the transcription termination region of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S (CaMV35S terminator) and the like can be preferably used. Of these, the Nos terminator can be more preferably used.

  In the above transformation vector, by placing the terminator at an appropriate position, after introduction into a plant cell, an unnecessarily long transcript is synthesized, or a strong promoter reduces the copy number of the plasmid. Such a phenomenon can be prevented from occurring.

  For example, a drug resistance gene can be used as the selection marker. Specific examples of such drug resistance genes include drug resistance genes for hygromycin, bleomycin, kanamycin, gentamicin, chloramphenicol and the like. Thereby, the transformed plant body can be easily selected by selecting the plant body growing in the medium containing the antibiotic.

  Examples of the base sequence for improving the translation efficiency include omega sequences derived from tobacco mosaic virus. By placing this omega sequence in the untranslated region (5′UTR) of the promoter, the translation efficiency of the gene encoding the transcription factor can be increased. Thus, the transformation vector can contain various DNA segments depending on the purpose.

  The method for constructing the recombinant expression vector is not particularly limited, and a gene that encodes the promoter and transcription factor and, if necessary, the other DNA segment are pre-determined in an appropriately selected parent vector. It may be introduced so that the order becomes. For example, an expression cassette may be constructed by linking a gene encoding a transcription factor and a promoter (such as a terminator if necessary), and then introducing this into a vector.

  In the construction of the expression cassette, for example, the order of the DNA segments can be defined by setting the cleavage sites of each DNA segment as complementary protruding ends and reacting with a ligation enzyme. When the terminator is included in the expression cassette, the promoter, the gene encoding the transcription factor, and the terminator may be in order from the upstream. Further, the types of reagents for constructing the recombinant expression vector, that is, the types of restriction enzymes and ligation enzymes are not particularly limited, and commercially available ones may be appropriately selected and used.

  Moreover, the propagation method (production method) of the recombinant expression vector is not particularly limited, and a conventionally known method can be used. In general, Escherichia coli may be used as a host and propagated in the E. coli. At this time, a preferred E. coli type may be selected according to the type of vector.

(I-2-2) Transformation Step In the transformation step performed in the present invention, the recombinant expression vector described in (I-2-1) above is introduced into a plant cell, and (I-1) above. It is sufficient if the transcription factor described is produced.

  The method (transformation method) for introducing the recombinant expression vector into a plant cell is not particularly limited, and any conventionally known method suitable for the plant cell can be used. Specifically, for example, a method using Agrobacterium or a method of directly introducing into plant cells can be used. As a method using Agrobacterium, for example, Transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana by vacuum infiltration (http://www.bch.msu.edu/pamgreen/protocol.htm) can be used.

  As a method for directly introducing a recombinant expression vector into a plant cell, for example, a microinjection method, an electroporation method (electroporation method), a polyethylene glycol method, a particle gun method, a protoplast fusion method, a calcium phosphate method, or the like may be used. it can.

  Examples of plant cells into which the recombinant expression vector is introduced include cells of each tissue, callus, suspension culture cells, etc. in plant organs such as flowers, leaves and roots.

  Here, in the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, the recombinant expression vector may be appropriately constructed according to the type of plant to be produced. An expression vector may be constructed in advance and introduced into plant cells. That is, in the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, the recombinant expression vector construction step described in (I-2-1) may or may not be included.

(I-2-3) Other steps and other methods In the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, it is sufficient if the transformation step is included, and the recombinant expression vector construction step is further included. However, other steps may be included. Specifically, the selection process etc. which select an appropriate transformant from the plant body after transformation can be mentioned.

  The selection method is not particularly limited. For example, selection may be performed based on drug resistance such as hygromycin resistance, and after growing the transformant, in the absence of plant hormones such as auxin and cytokinin. You may select from the plant body in which a dedifferentiation occurs on the conditions which a dedifferentiation does not occur normally.

  In the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, by introducing the gene encoding the above transcription factor into the plant, dedifferentiation is simply induced from the plant by sexual reproduction or asexual reproduction. It becomes possible to obtain modified offspring. It is also possible to obtain propagation materials such as plant cells, seeds, fruits, strains, calluses, tubers, cut ears, lumps, etc. from the plants and their progeny, and mass-produce the plants based on these. . Therefore, in the production method of the plant body concerning this invention, the reproduction process (mass production process) which reproduces the plant body after selection may be included.

  The plant body in the present invention includes at least one of a grown plant individual, a plant tissue, a plant cell, a callus, and a seed. That is, in this invention, if it is a state which can be made to grow finally to a plant individual, all will be considered as a plant body. The plant cells include various forms of plant cells. Such plant cells include, for example, suspension culture cells, protoplasts, leaf sections and the like. Plants can be obtained by growing and differentiating these plant cells. In addition, the reproduction | regeneration of the plant body from a plant cell can be performed using a conventionally well-known method according to the kind of plant cell. Therefore, in the method for producing a plant according to the present invention, a regeneration step for regenerating the plant from the plant cell may be included.

  In addition, when the present inventors cultured the plant body according to the present invention without adding hygromycin, which is a selective marker reagent used in the transformation step, the callus surface differentiated, and this state It was found that the medium proliferates actively even in a medium without plant hormones. In this state, anthocyanins used as model secondary metabolites that can be measured in Arabidopsis thaliana are cultured in an induction medium, thereby producing a high concentration of anthocyanins that are hardly produced in callus induced by conventional methods in Arabidopsis thaliana. I found it.

  Thus, when the antibiotic which is the reagent for the selection marker of the transformant is removed from the medium, the callus, which is the plant body of the present invention, is partially grown on the surface of the callus and proliferates without addition of plant hormones in this state. be able to. Such callus can be suitably used particularly for the production of secondary metabolites that are biosynthesized in specific differentiated tissues. Therefore, the plant body according to the present invention includes a callus that grows while the surface is partially formed and the surface is partially formed. A plant according to the present invention is a callus obtained by culturing a plant obtained using a drug resistance gene as a selection marker in the transformation step without adding an antibiotic that is a reagent for the selection marker. sell.

  Here, the selection marker is, for example, a drug resistance gene, and specific examples include a drug resistance gene for hygromycin, bleomycin, kanamycin, gentamicin, chloramphenicol, and the like. Among these, the selection marker is preferably a drug resistance gene for hygromycin. Examples of antibiotics that are reagents for the selection marker include hygromycin, bleomycin, kanamycin, gentamicin, chloramphenicol, etc. Among them, hygromycin can be more preferably used.

(II) Plant obtained by the present invention, its usefulness, and use thereof The method for producing a plant according to the present invention is based on excessive production of the transcription factor in the plant. Thereby, it is considered that the transcription of the target gene targeted by the transcription factor is promoted. As a result, it is possible to produce a plant that has been modified so that dedifferentiation of the resulting plant is induced. Therefore, the present invention includes a plant obtained by the above-described method for producing a plant.

(II-1) Specific Example of Plant According to the Present Invention Here, the specific type of the plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention is not particularly limited, and such desorption is not limited. A plant whose usefulness is enhanced by induction of differentiation can be mentioned. Such a plant may be an angiosperm or a gymnosperm. Further, the angiosperm may be a monocotyledonous plant or a dicotyledonous plant, but a dicotyledonous plant is more preferable. The dicotyledonous plant may be a petal flower subclass or a joint flower subclass. As the joint flower subclass, for example, gentian eyes, eggplant eyes, perilla eyes, armored eyes, plantain eyes, asteraceae eyes, omanohasa eyes, red-eyed eyes, antaceae eyes, and chrysanthemum eyes can be mentioned. In addition, examples of the petal flower subclass include bivalamidae, camellia, blue mushrooms, crayfish eyes, diptera, violets, willows, scallops, azaleas, crabs, oysters, primulas, etc. be able to.

  Specific examples of the plant modified so as to induce dedifferentiation according to the present invention include rapeseed, potato, spinach, soybean, cabbage, lettuce, tomato, cauliflower, soy bean, turnip, radish, broccoli, melon. , Orange, watermelon, leek, burdock and other edible plants, roses, chrysanthemum, hydrangea, carnations, etc. And medicinal plants such as Cephaelis ipecacuanha.

(II-2) Usefulness of the Present Invention In the present invention, a plant can be modified so that dedifferentiation is induced, but the usefulness of the present invention is not particularly limited, and Any field that has an effect by induction of differentiation may be used. Such fields include, for example, callus formation of plants that are difficult to callus by being modified so that dedifferentiation is induced, production of useful substances using callus, breeding field using a redifferentiation system from callus, etc. Can be mentioned.

  First, an application example to callus formation of a plant that is difficult to callus will be described. For example, it is necessary to examine the types and concentrations of plant hormones used for callusization. Some plants, such as wheat, are difficult to callus. It is considered that callusification can be promoted by inducing dedifferentiation to such a plant that is difficult to callus by using the method for producing a plant according to the present invention.

  In addition, the application to the production of useful substances will be explained. In callus culture, one of the major causes that callus, which is a plant culture cell, loses the ability to produce useful substances, is the gene methylation caused by the action of excess auxin. It is well known that an epigenetic mutation (Lambe et al., In Vitro Cell. Dev. Biol. Plant. 33.155-162 (1997)) and a chromosomal defect are involved. In the production of useful substances, there is a need for plant culture cells that have the ability to grow and stably produce useful substances (and stably express secondary metabolism). However, auxin dedifferentiates the form and promotes cell proliferation, but at the same time often suppresses secondary metabolism.

  Callus induced by a plant modified so that dedifferentiation is induced by the method for producing a plant according to the present invention does not require exogenous auxin, and in addition, tumor cells generated by Agrobacterium ( It has been experimentally revealed that the amount of endogenous auxin (indole acetic acid) is not excessively increased unlike crown gall. That is, it is considered that gene inactivation is hardly caused by exogenous auxin added to the medium or excessive endogenous auxin. Therefore, the plant according to the present invention can be suitably used for production of useful substances.

  Further, when the plant body of the present invention is cultured without adding hygromycin, which is a selective marker reagent, the callus surface is differentiated, and actively proliferates in this state even in a plant hormone-free medium. In this state, anthocyanins used as model secondary metabolites that can be measured in Arabidopsis thaliana are cultured in an induction medium, so that a high concentration of secondary metabolites (anthocyanins) that are hardly produced in callus induced by conventional methods in Arabidopsis thaliana The phenomenon of production is seen. From this, the callus obtained by the present invention is not only less likely to inactivate secondary metabolism due to the action of hormones, but it is also possible to more actively produce secondary metabolites by partial redifferentiation It is thought that. If it is shown that this function can be applied to medicinal plants that produce useful and high-value-added substances (alkaloids, etc.), it is possible to propose the construction of a novel useful substance production system using a new type of cells that has never existed before. Furthermore, by using a transcription induction system (glucocorticoid, estradiol, galactose, etc.), it becomes possible to control the gene expression in a one-to-one relationship with culture environment factors, increasing the amount of cells in the dedifferentiation state (induction system ON), and redifferentiation It is considered that secondary metabolites can be produced in the state (induction system OFF), and more effective useful substance production is possible.

  Similarly, when applied to the field of breeding, the obtained callus is easily organized when it is cultured without adding the selection marker hygromycin. Since the phenomenon of returning to the body is also seen, by studying and utilizing these redifferentiation mechanisms and differentiation induction conditions, it is possible to produce large numbers of seedlings by growing cells in callus state and then redifferentiating them It is thought that.

  As described above, by introducing a vector containing an antisense strand of a gene encoding the transcription factor or an RNAi vector into a plant cell, it is possible to suppress dedifferentiation in the introduced plant body or cell. Conceivable. By such a method, application to production of herbicide-tolerant plants by modification so as to suppress dedifferentiation becomes possible. That is, the plant body modified so that dedifferentiation is suppressed has low sensitivity to plant hormones such as auxin. Therefore, it can contribute to the production of a plant that can grow even in the presence of auxin or the like, that is, a herbicide-tolerant plant to a herbicide using auxin or the like.

(II-3) Utilization of the present invention The field of utilization and utilization method of the present invention are not particularly limited, but as an example, as described above, dedifferentiation is induced by the plant production method according to the present invention. Plants modified in this way can be suitably used for production of useful substances. Therefore, the present invention includes a method for producing a useful substance by culturing the plant of the present invention without adding a plant hormone to produce a secondary metabolite.

  The method for producing a useful substance according to the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is a method for culturing the plant body of the present invention to produce a secondary metabolite, and any conventionally known method can be used.

  In addition, the method for producing a useful substance according to the present invention was obtained by using a callus that grows while the surface is partially formed and the surface is partially formed, or a drug resistance gene as a selection marker in the transformation step. Callus obtained by culturing a plant body without adding an antibiotic that is a reagent for the selective marker is cultured without adding an antibiotic and a plant hormone that are the reagents for the selective marker, and a secondary metabolite is obtained. A method of production is also included.

  Moreover, as another example of the field of use and method of use of the present invention, a kit for performing the plant production method according to the present invention, that is, a dedifferentiation induction kit can be mentioned.

  Specific examples of this dedifferentiation induction kit include those containing at least a recombinant expression vector containing a gene encoding the above transcription factor. Moreover, it is more preferable that the dedifferentiation induction kit according to the present invention includes a reagent group for introducing the recombinant expression vector into a plant cell. Examples of the reagent group include enzymes, buffers, and the like corresponding to the type of transformation. In addition, if necessary, experimental materials such as microcentrifuge tubes may be attached.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although this invention is demonstrated in detail based on an Example and FIG. 1 thru | or FIG. 6, this invention is not limited to a following example.

[Example 1]
In Example 1 below, a recombinant expression vector was constructed by linking the Arabidopsis thaliana-derived RAP 2.4 gene (At1g78080) downstream of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter (hereinafter referred to as CaMV35S for convenience). Was introduced into Arabidopsis thaliana using the Agrobacterium method to transform Arabidopsis thaliana to produce a transformed plant overexpressing the RAP 2.4 gene.

<Construction of vector for construction of transformation vector>
As shown in FIG. 1, p35SG, a vector for constructing a transformation vector, was constructed as shown in the following steps (1) to (4).

  (1) The regions of attL1 and attL2 on the pENTR vector manufactured by Invitrogen are expressed as primers attL1-F (SEQ ID NO: 7), attL1-R (SEQ ID NO: 8), attL2-F (SEQ ID NO: 9), attL2-R ( Amplified by PCR using SEQ ID NO: 10). The obtained attL1 fragment was digested with restriction enzymes HindIII and attL2 fragment with EcoRI and purified. The PCR reaction conditions were 25 cycles, with a denaturation reaction at 94 ° C. for 1 minute, an annealing reaction at 47 ° C. for 2 minutes, and an extension reaction at 74 ° C. for 1 minute. All subsequent PCR reactions were carried out under the same conditions.

  (2) After cleaving the plasmid pBI221 made by Clontech (Clontech, USA) with restriction enzymes XbaI and SacI, the GUS gene was removed by agarose gel electrophoresis, and the transcription termination region of CaMV35S and nopaline synthase gene (below) In the description, for convenience, a 35S-Nos plasmid fragment DNA containing Nos-ter) was obtained.

(3) DNA fragments having the following sequences of SEQ ID NOS: 11 and 12 were synthesized, heated at 90 ° C. for 2 minutes, then heated at 60 ° C. for 1 hour, and then allowed to stand at room temperature (25 ° C.) for 2 hours. Annealing was performed to form a double strand. This was ligated to the XbaI-SacI region of the 35S-Nos plasmid fragment DNA to complete the p35S-Nos plasmid. The DNA fragment having the sequences of SEQ ID NOs: 11 and 12 includes a BamHI restriction enzyme site at the 5 ′ end, an omega sequence derived from tobacco mosaic virus that enhances translation efficiency, and restriction enzyme sites SmaI, SalI, and SstI in this order.
5'-ctagaggatccacaattaccaacaacaacaaacaacaaacaacattacaattacagatcccgggggtaccgtcgacgagctc-3 '(SEQ ID NO: 11)
5'-cgtcgacggtacccccgggatctgtaattgtaatgttgtttgttgtttgttgttgttggtaattgtggatcct-3 '(SEQ ID NO: 12)
(4) The p35S-Nos plasmid was digested with the restriction enzyme HindIII, and the attL1 fragment was inserted. This was further digested with EcoRI and the attL2 fragment was inserted to complete the vector p35SG.

<Construction of transformation vector>
As shown in FIG. 2, pBIGCKH, which is a plant transformation vector having two att sites for recombination with a DNA fragment sandwiched between att sites of the construction vector, is transformed into the following steps (1) to (3 ).

  (1) pBIG (Becker, D. Nucleic Acids Res. 18: 203, 1990) transferred from Michigan State University, USA was digested with restriction enzymes HindIII and EcoRI, and the GUS and Nos regions were removed by electrophoresis.

  (2) The Fragment A of Gateway (registered trademark) vector conversion system purchased from Invitrogen was inserted into the EcoRV site of the plasmid pBluescript. This was digested with HindIII-EcoRI and the Fragment A fragment was recovered.

  (3) The recovered Fragment A fragment was ligated with the above pBIG plasmid fragment to construct pBIGCKH. These can grow only in E. coli DB3.1 (Invitrogen) and are resistant to chloramphenicol and kanamycin.

<Incorporation of RAP2.4 gene into construction vector>
A gene encoding a transcription factor RAP2.4 protein derived from Arabidopsis thaliana was incorporated into the construction vector p35SG as shown in the following steps (1) to (3) to obtain p35SRAP2.4G.

(1) From a cDNA library prepared using mRNA prepared from Arabidopsis leaves, a DNA fragment containing only the coding region containing the stop codon of Arabidopsis RAP2.4 gene was amplified by PCR using the following primers.
Primer 1 (RAP 2.4-F) 5′-ATGGCAGCTGCTATGAATTTGTAC-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 13)
Primer 2 (RAP2.4-R) 5′-CTAAGCTAGAATCGAATCCCAATC-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 14)
The nucleotide sequence of the RAP2.4 gene and the amino acid sequence encoded by it are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 2 and 1, respectively.

  (2) The obtained DNA fragment of RAP 2.4 coding region was ligated to the SmaI site of the construction vector p35SG previously digested with the restriction enzyme SmaI, as shown in FIG.

  (3) Escherichia coli was transformed with this plasmid, the plasmid was prepared, the nucleotide sequence was determined, and the clone inserted in the forward direction was isolated.

<Construction of recombinant expression vector>
An expression vector having a plant as a host was constructed by recombining a DNA fragment containing the CaMV35S promoter, RAP2.4 gene, Nos-ter, etc. on the construction vector to the plant transformation vector pBIGCKH. The recombination reaction was performed as follows (1) to (3) using Gateway (registered trademark) LR clonase (registered trademark) of Invitrogen.

  (1) First, p35SRAP 2.4G 1.5 μL (about 150 ng) in which a DNA fragment of the RAP 2.4 coding region is inserted in the forward direction, LR buffer 4.0 μL diluted in pBIGCKH 4.0 μL (about 400 ng) and TE buffer solution 5.5 μL (10 mM TrisCl pH 7.0, 1 mM EDTA) was added.

  (2) LR clonase 4.0 μL was added to this solution and incubated at 25 ° C. for 60 minutes. Subsequently, 4.0 μL of proteinase K was added and incubated at 37 ° C. for 10 minutes.

  (3) Thereafter, 1-2 μL of this solution was transformed into E. coli (DH5a, etc.) and selected with kanamycin.

<Production of plant body transformed with recombinant expression vector>
Next, as shown in the following steps (1) to (3), in pBIG-RAP2.4 (35S :: RAP2.4) which is a plasmid in which the DNA fragment containing the RAP2.4 gene is incorporated into pBIGCKH, Arabidopsis thaliana was transformed to produce transformed plants. Transformation of Arabidopsis plants was according to Transformation of Arabidopsis thaliana by vacuum infiltration (http://www.bch.msu.edu/pamgreen/protocol.htm). However, I did not use vacuum to infect it, but just dipped it.

  (1) First, the obtained plasmid, pBIG-RAP2.4, was introduced into a soil bacterium ((Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain GV3101 (C58C1Rifr) pMP90 (Gmr) (koncz and Sahell 1986)) strain by electroporation. The fungus was cultured in 1 liter of LB medium containing antibiotics (kanamycin (Km) 50 μg / ml, gentamicin (Gm) 25 μg / ml, rifampicillin (Rif) 50 μg / ml) until OD600 was 1. Then, the culture was performed. The cells were collected from the liquid and suspended in 1 liter of an infiltration medium (Table 1 below).

  (2) Arabidopsis thaliana cultivated for 14 days was immersed in this solution for 2 minutes to infect, and then bred and seeded again. The collected seeds are sterilized with 25% bleach (effective hypochlorous acid concentration 1.5%) and 0.02% Triton X-100 solution for 7 minutes, rinsed three times with sterilized water, and sterilized hygromycin selective medium (See Table 2 below)

  (3) On average, 20 to 30 transformed plants that were hygromycin-resistant plants were obtained from about 2000 seeds that were sowed. Total RNA was prepared from these plants, and it was confirmed that the RAP 2.4 gene was introduced using RT-PCR. The obtained transformed plant body was markedly suppressed in differentiation, and the shoot apex, hypocotyl, and root gradually became callus.

<Callusification in the absence of plant hormones>
The seedlings of the obtained transformed plants were grown in a CIM medium containing hygromycin in the absence of plant hormones (auxin and cytokinin). Table 3 below shows the composition of the CIM medium, and Table 4 below shows the composition of the B5 medium. The plant hormone-free CIM medium used in this example is a medium in which auxin (indicated as “2,4-D”) and kinetin, which is a kind of cytokinin, are not added in Table 3. Further, the amount of hygromycin added to the CIM medium was 30 mg with respect to 1 liter of CIM medium.

  FIG. 4 shows the results of growing a transformed plant overexpressed with the RAP2.4 gene using 35S-RAP2.4 in a CIM medium in the absence of the plant hormone. Usually, in order to callus plants, they must be grown in a medium containing plant hormones, but as shown in FIG. 4, Arabidopsis transformed with 35S-RAP2.4 (35S :: RAP2.4). In the absence of plant hormones, these young plants became callus-like plants with suppressed organ differentiation such as stems, leaves and roots. In FIG. 4A, the scale bar indicates 3 mm, and in FIG. 4B, the scale bar indicates 5 mm. Thus, in Arabidopsis transformants in which the RAP 2.4 gene was overexpressed with 35S-RAP 2.4, dedifferentiation was induced even in the absence of auxin and kinetin. This confirmed that the transcription factor encoded by the RAP2.4 gene is a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation.

[Example 2]
A transformed plant body obtained by transforming Arabidopsis thaliana and overexpressing the At1g22190 gene in the same manner as in Example 1 except that an Arabidopsis thaliana-derived RAP 2.4 gene (At1g78080) was used instead of the Arabidopsis thaliana-derived RAP2.4 gene (At1g78080) Produced.

The following primers were used to amplify a DNA fragment containing only the coding region containing the stop codon of the At1g22190 gene by PCR.
Primer 1 (At1g22190-F) 5′-ATGACAACTTCTATGGATTTTTACAG-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 15)
Primer 2 (At1g22190-R) 5′-CTAATTTACAAGACTCGAACACTG-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 16)
In addition, the nucleotide sequence of the At1g22190 gene and the encoded amino acid sequence are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 4 and 3, respectively.

  A part of the seedling of the obtained transformed plant was cut out and grown in a CIM medium in the absence of plant hormone in the same manner as in Example 1 and the results are shown in FIG. A and B in FIG. 5 show the results of two separate lines of transformants. As shown in FIG. 5, Arabidopsis seedlings transformed with 35S :: At1g22190 did not become normal plants but dedifferentiated (callusized) even in the absence of plant hormones. In FIG. 5, the scale bar indicates 3 mm.

Example 3
A transgenic plant obtained by transforming Arabidopsis thaliana and overexpressing the At1g36060 gene in the same manner as in Example 1 except that an Arabidopsis thaliana-derived RAP 2.4 gene (At1g78080) was used instead of the Arabidopsis thaliana-derived RAP2.4 gene (At1g78080) Produced.

The following primers were used for PCR amplification of a DNA fragment containing only the coding region containing the stop codon of the At1g36060 gene.
Primer 1 (At1g36060-F) 5′-ATGGCGGATCTCTTCGGTGG-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 17)
Primer 2 (At1g36060-R) 5′-TCACGATAAAATTGAAGCCCAATC-3 ′ (SEQ ID NO: 18)
In addition, the base sequence of the At1g36060 gene and the amino acid sequence encoded by it are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 6 and 5, respectively.

A part of the seedling of the obtained transformed plant was cut out and grown in a CIM medium without plant hormone in the same manner as in Example 1 and the results are shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, A and B show the results of two separate lines of transformants. As shown in FIG. 6, Arabidopsis seedlings transformed with 35S :: At1g36060 did not become normal plants but dedifferentiated (callusized) even in the absence of plant hormones. In FIG. 6, the scale bar represents 3 mm.

Example 4
In Example 4 below, whether or not the callus formation of the plant of the present invention is caused by endogenous auxin overproduction, the RAP 2.4 gene is overexpressed in the DR5 :: GUS plant. It was investigated by.

  DR5 :: GUS is a promoter in which GUS gene is fused as a reporter gene to a promoter in which seven auxin response elements (TGTCTC) are arranged in tandem (Ulmasov, T. et al., Plant Cell, 9, 1963-1971, 1997). In Arabidopsis thaliana introduced with this promoter reporter, the site of endogenous auxin biosynthesis or the site responding to exogenous auxin can be identified by detecting GUS activity (Aloni, R. et al. Planta 216,841-853, 2003). For this reason, DR5 :: GUS plants, which are plants into which this promoter reporter has been introduced, are often used for studies on the biosynthesis of auxin and the relationship between auxin and morphogenesis.

  By overexpressing RAP2.4 in the DR5 :: GUS plant (35SRAP2.4NOS / DR5 :: GUS), the DR5 :: GUS plant can be modified so that dedifferentiation is induced. If the callus of the callus thus induced (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as RAP 2.4 callus) is due to endogenous auxin overproduction, this RAP 2.4 callus shows high GUS activity. Should be.

  Therefore, as in the flow on the right side of FIG. 7, a recombinant expression vector (35SRAP2.4NOS) that causes DR5 :: GUS plants to overexpress RAP2.4 constructed in Example 1 is used in the same manner as in Example 1. And transformed with Agrobacterium. The seeds of the obtained first generation of transformation (T1) were sown in the above-described hygromycin selective medium, and after selecting for transformants, the above-described plant hormone-free CIM medium (containing hygromycin (Hm)) was contained. ) To obtain RAP 2.4 callus. As a control (control) of the experiment, a DR5 :: GUS plant was transformed with a vector not containing RAP 2.4 (vector control; 35 SNOS) as shown in the flow on the left side of FIG. Callus was induced from the seedling of T1) with a medium containing auxin (2,4-D) (the CIM medium described above). The DR5 :: GUS plant was obtained from Dr. T. Guilfoyle (Department of Biochemistry, University of Missouri, Columbia) and a transformation vector containing DR5 :: GUS was distributed to Arabidopsis thaliana in advance. Used after transformation.

  Two types of callus obtained were GUS stained. The GUS staining method was performed as follows using a GUS staining buffer prepared by mixing the reagents shown in Table 5 below.

  The sample sampled in 0.5-1.5 mL of the GUS staining buffer was placed so that the entire sample was immersed. Degassing treatment was performed at 30 ° C. for 60 minutes, and then incubated at 37 ° C. overnight (18 hours). Next, the treatment for replacing the buffer with 70% ethanol was performed several times to remove the color. Then, it replaced with distilled water and observed with the stereomicroscope or the microscope.

  As a result, the callus of the vector control shown in FIG. 8 (indicated as “Vector Control / DR5 :: GUS callus (+ auxin)” in FIG. 8) was stained blue after GUS staining (B in the figure) and the GUS activity was observed. It was. This is because DR5 :: GUS responded to exogenous auxin (2,4-D) added to the medium.

  On the other hand, in the case of RAP 2.4 callus, even if there is no exogenous auxin (indicated as “RAP2.4 / DR5 :: GUS callus (auxin free)” in FIG. 8), the form of callus as shown in C in the figure. However, GUS activity was not observed after GUS staining (D in the figure). This result was thought to be due to epigenetic silencing (such as methylation) of the DR5 :: GUS gene, so RAP2.4 callus was added to a medium containing auxin (2,4-D). When GUS staining was performed after culturing for 48 hours (indicated as “RAP2.4 / DR5 :: GUS callus (+ auxin after 48 hours)” in FIG. 8), after GUS staining (F in the diagram), it was stained blue. GUS activity was observed in the same manner as the vector control callus. This result shows that the DR5 :: GUS gene possessed by RAP2.4 callus functions normally by auxin.

  These results indicated that endogenous auxin overproduction did not occur in RAP 2.4 callus. In addition, it is shown that the form of RAP 2.4 callus as seen in C in FIG. 8 is not caused by exogenous auxin (in fact, it is callus in a medium without plant hormones). ing).

Example 5
Next, an attempt was made to measure the endogenous auxin (IAA) concentration of RAP 2.4 callus. The method was based on the method of Nakamura et al. (Nakamura, A. et al. Plant Physiology, 133, 1843-1853, 2003) using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). The procedure of the method is shown below.

1-10 mg of tissue was taken into a 1.5 mL microtube and homogenized in liquid nitrogen. To this microtube, 500 μL of 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 7, containing 0.02% (w / v) sodium diethyldithiocarbamate) was added to suspend the tissue well, and 200 pg of ¹³ C6IAA was added. Extraction was performed while shaking at 4 ° C. for 1 hour, and the pH was adjusted to 2.6 with 25 μL of 1M HCl. After adding 50 mg of XAD7-HP and suspending and equilibrating in a mild shaker for 30 minutes and removing the buffer, XAD7-HP was washed twice with 500 μL of 1% acetic acid and extracted with 500 μL of dichloromethane for 30 minutes (twice). ). The dichloromethane fractions were combined and dried on a speed bag, the sample was derivatized and subjected to GC-MS analysis.

  When RAP 2.4 callus was used as a sample, a peak overlapping with the internal standard (13C6IAA) was present, and quantification was impossible. Therefore, the seedlings of transformed plants overexpressing the RAP 2.4 gene on the seventh day after sowing were used as samples. As a control, the seedling of a vector control plant was used. When seedlings were used, there was no peak overlapping with the internal standard found in callus, and quantification was possible. Further, on the seventh day after sowing, the difference in morphology between the transformed plant overexpressing the RAP2.4 gene and the vector control plant is clear, and the effect of the introduced gene appears.

  FIG. 9 shows the measurement results of endogenous auxin (IAA) concentration (indicated as “IAA concentration” in the figure. The unit is pg / mgF.W. (F.W .: fresh weight)). As a result, the endogenous auxin concentration in the seedling of the transformed plant body overexpressing the RAP2.4 gene (indicated as “RAP2.4 seedling” in the figure) "Vector control seedling" is displayed).

  From the experimental results of Example 4 and Example 5, it was revealed that callus formation due to overexpression of the RAP 2.4 gene was not caused by overproduction of endogenous auxin.

Example 6
In Example 6 below, in the culture of RAP 2.4 callus, hygromycin (Hm), which is a reagent for selecting a transformant, was removed from the medium, and changes in callus were observed.

  As in Example 1 <callusification in the absence of plant hormones>, hygromycin was added to a CIM medium containing no plant hormone (Hm (+)), and hygromycin was added to a CIM medium containing no plant hormone. What was not added (Hm (-)) was prepared.

  A part of RAP 2.4 callus was inoculated in each medium and cultured under light irradiation conditions. FIG. 10 shows the observation results of RAP 2.4 callus on the 40th day after planting. In FIG. 10, the scale bar indicates 5 mm. As shown in FIG. 10A, Hm (+) maintained a dedifferentiated form, while as shown in B, it was observed that leaves were differentiated on the surface of the callus in Hm (−).

  In addition, a part of RAP 2.4 callus was planted in each medium and cultured without irradiating light. FIG. 10 shows the observation results of RAP 2.4 callus on the 40th day after planting. As shown in FIG. 10C, Hm (+) maintained a dedifferentiated form, whereas as shown in D, it was observed that leaves and roots were differentiated on the surface of the callus in Hm (−). It was.

  Furthermore, as shown in E in FIG. 11, RAP 2.4 callus can be subcultured in a liquid CIM medium that does not contain Hm (−) plant hormone, with the surface of the callus partially formed. Was confirmed.

  When the CIM medium containing no plant hormone was changed to Hm (+) again with the callus surface partially formed, the tissue that had partially formed the callus surface was white as shown in F in FIG. It died and died. This turns out to be the effect of hygromycin. That is, the cell tissue that has become a part of the callus surface is hygromycin sensitive, which is because the hygromycin resistance gene introduced into RAP 2.4 callus has no effect. It is thought that there is. Since the hygromycin resistance gene has been introduced into the RAP 2.4 callus together with the RAP 2.4 gene, the expression of the RAP 2.4 gene is suppressed for some reason as well as the hygromycin resistance gene in this experimental system. Can be considered. In other words, it is expected that the cells in which the expression of the RAP2.4 gene is suppressed due to some influence have been differentiated.

Example 7
In Example 7 below, the plant according to the present invention stably stabilizes a useful substance using RAP 2.4 callus obtained in Example 6 that is partially surfaced and grown with the surface partially fragmented. Production (stable secondary metabolism) was verified. As a secondary metabolite, anthocyanin is selected as a model secondary metabolite that can be measured in Arabidopsis thaliana, and the secondary plant in RAP 2.4 callus that grows in a state where the plant body, cultured cells, and surface of Arabidopsis thaliana are partially formed. The metabolite production ability was compared.

  As a plant body of Arabidopsis thaliana, the whole plant body (including roots) was cultivated for 14 days after the seedling was sown in a CIM medium not containing a plant hormone, and the wild strain (Col-0) was used. As cultured cells of Arabidopsis thaliana, newly induced LI strains (leaf-derived) and RI strains (root-derived) and T87 cultured cells distributed from RIKEN BioResource Center were used. These three types of cultured cells were previously cultured for 14 days in a CIM medium containing a plant hormone and used for the experiment. RAP 2.4 callus was cultured in a CIM medium containing no Hm (−) plant hormone for 14 days in advance and used in the experiment.

  It is known that Arabidopsis thaliana induces anthocyanins by light irradiation in a high concentration sucrose medium. Therefore, a liquid CIM medium (containing no plant hormone) containing 6% sucrose was used as the anthocyanin induction medium.

Each cell before and after induction in the anthocyanin induction medium was freeze-dried, and the anthocyanin content per unit dry weight was compared by absorbance at 530 nm. Anthocyanins were extracted by the following procedure. The cells were disrupted with a homogenizer in a 45% (v / v) methanol solution containing 5% (v / v) acetic acid, and centrifuged at 12000 rpm for 10 min. The supernatant was further centrifuged at 12000 rpm for 5 minutes, and the supernatant was used as an anthocyanin extract. The anthocyanin content was calculated by the following formula using the method of Laby et al. (Laby RJ et al. The Arabidopsis sugar-insensitive mutants sis4 and sis5 are defective in abscisic acid synthesis and response.Plant Jounal 23: 587-596 (2000)). Calculated.
Anthocyanin content (Abs ₅₃₀ / g DCW)
_{= [Abs 530 - (0.25 ×} Abs 657)] × extraction volume (mL) / dry cell weight
In the above formula, “DCW” represents “dry cell weight”, that is, cell dry weight.

  The results are shown in FIG. In comparison between before and after cultivation with an anthocyanin-inducing medium, a clear difference appeared in the anthocyanin synthesis ability of the plant body, the three cultured cells, and the RAP 2.4 callus that grew with the surface partially formed. Comparing plant and cultured cells, there was little difference in anthocyanin accumulation between plant and cultured cells before induction of anthocyanins. However, after induction, the anthocyanin content increased about 8 times before induction in the plant body, whereas in the three cultured cells, there was no change from that before the induction. On the other hand, in the RAP 2.4 callus that grows with the surface of the cultured cells used in this time, anthocyanins accumulated before induction compared to other cells (plants and 3 cultured cells). After the induction, more anthocyanins were accumulated. From this, it was clarified that the cultured cells used this time and RAP 2.4 callus that grows in a partially surfaced state have anthocyanin synthesizing ability that is not found in the three cultured cells.

  Thus, in the present invention, a plant body modified to induce dedifferentiation can be obtained by overexpressing a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation. Plants and induced callus thus modified can be widely used for production of useful substances, development of new varieties, regeneration of transformants after gene introduction into plants, artificial seeds, and the like. Therefore, the present invention can be used in the pharmaceutical industry that uses plant-derived compounds as raw materials, the horticulture industry that requires breed improvement, forestry, various agriculture and agribusiness, and the industry that processes agricultural products, the food industry, etc. Yes, and considered very useful.

It is process drawing which shows the construction method of the vector for construction for constructing the recombinant expression vector used in an Example. It is process drawing which shows the construction method of vector pBIGCKH for transformation. It is a process figure which integrates a RAP2.4 gene in the construction vector p35SG used in an Example. It is a figure which shows the result of having grown the Arabidopsis transgenic plant which overexpressed At1g22190 gene with the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter in the absence of a plant hormone. It is a figure which shows the result of having grown the Arabidopsis transgenic plant which overexpressed At1g36060 gene with the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter in the absence of plant hormones. It is a figure which shows the result of having grown the Arabidopsis transgenic plant which overexpressed RAP2.4 gene with the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter in the absence of a plant hormone. In Example 4, it was examined whether the callus formation of the plant of the present invention was caused by overproduction of endogenous auxin by overexpressing the RAP2.4 gene in the DR5 :: GUS plant. It is a figure which shows a procedure. In Example 4, it was examined whether the callus formation of the plant of the present invention was caused by overproduction of endogenous auxin by overexpressing the RAP2.4 gene in the DR5 :: GUS plant. It is a figure which shows a result. In Example 5, it is a figure which shows the result of having measured the endogenous auxin (IAA) density | concentration of RAP2.4 callus. The figure which shows the result of having culture | cultivated RAP2.4 callus with the culture medium (Hm (+)) which added the hygromycin which is the reagent of the selection marker of a transformant, and the culture medium (Hm (-)) which does not add hygromycin. is there. It is a figure which shows the result of having subcultured RAP2.4 callus with the callus surface partly made. It is a graph which shows the result of having compared the secondary metabolite production ability in the RAP2.4 callus which grows with the anthocyanin used as a model secondary metabolite, the plant body of Arabidopsis thaliana, the cultured cell, and the surface in the state of partialization.

Claims (11)

A dedifferentiation characterized by including a transformation step of introducing a recombinant expression vector containing the gene into a plant cell so that the gene according to any of the following (a) to (e) is expressed: For producing a plant modified to induce
(A) a gene encoding a transcription factor involved in dedifferentiation,
(B) a gene encoding a protein consisting of the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5;
(C) In the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 1, 3, or 5, it consists of an amino acid sequence in which one or several amino acids are substituted, deleted, inserted, and / or added, and is involved in dedifferentiation A gene encoding a protein,
(D) a gene having the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 as an open reading frame region,
(E) a base sequence that hybridizes under stringent conditions with a gene consisting of a base sequence complementary to the gene consisting of the base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, 4 or 6 as an open reading frame region; A gene that encodes a protein involved in differentiation.   The method for producing a plant according to claim 1, further comprising an expression vector construction step for constructing the recombinant expression vector.   A plant produced by the production method according to claim 1 or 2 and modified so as to induce dedifferentiation.   The plant body according to claim 3, wherein the concentration of endogenous auxin in the plant body is not significantly increased as compared to that before being modified so as to induce dedifferentiation.   The plant body according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the plant body contains at least one of a grown plant individual, plant tissue, plant cell, callus, and seed.   4. The plant according to claim 3, wherein the plant is a callus, and the callus is a callus that can be grown in a state where the surface is partially formed and the surface is partially formed by controlling culture conditions. The plant according to any one of 5.   The plant body is a callus obtained by culturing a plant body obtained using a drug resistance gene as a selection marker in the transformation step without adding an antibiotic that is a reagent for the selection marker. The plant according to any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein: A kit for performing the production method according to claim 1 or 2,
A plant dedifferentiation induction kit comprising at least a recombinant expression vector comprising the gene according to any one of (a) to (e) above and a promoter.   The plant dedifferentiation induction kit according to claim 8, further comprising a reagent group for introducing the recombinant expression vector into a plant cell.   A method for producing a useful substance, which comprises culturing the plant according to any one of claims 3 to 5 without adding a plant hormone to produce a secondary metabolite.   A method for producing a useful substance, which comprises culturing the plant according to claim 6 or 7 without adding antibiotics and plant hormones as reagents for the selection marker to produce secondary metabolites.