Novel insights of ethylene role in strawberry cell wall metabolism.

Due to its organoleptic and nutraceutical qualities, strawberry fruit (Fragaria x ananassa, Duch) is a worldwide important commodity. The role of ethylene in the regulation of strawberry cell wall metabolism was studied in fruit from Toyonoka cultivar harvested at white stage, when most changes associated with fruit ripening have begun. Fruit were treated with ethephon, an ethylene-releasing reagent, or with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), a competitive inhibitor of ethylene action, maintaining a set of non-treated fruit as controls for each condition. Ethephon treated-fruit showed higher contents of hemicelluloses, cellulose and neutral sugars regarding controls, while 1-MCP-treated fruit showed a lower amount of those fractions. On the other hand, ethephon-treated fruit presented a lower quantity of galacturonic acid from ionically and covalently bound pectins regarding controls, while 1-MCP-treated fruit showed higher contents of those components. We also explored the ethylene effect over the mRNA accumulation of genes related to pectins and hemicelluloses metabolism, and a relationship between gene expression patterns and cell wall polysaccharides contents was shown. Moreover, we detected that strawberry necrotrophic pathogens growth more easily on plates containing cell walls from ethephon-treated fruit regarding controls, while a lower growth rate was observed when cell walls from 1-MCP treated fruit were used as the only carbon source, suggesting an effect of ethylene on cell wall structure. Around 60% of strawberry cell wall is made up of pectins, which in turns is 70% made by homogalacturonans. Our findings support the idea of a central role for pectins on strawberry fruit softening and a participation of ethylene in the regulation of this process.

Overexpression of the carbohydrate binding module of strawberry expansin2 in Arabidopsis thaliana modifies plant growth and cell wall metabolism.

Several cell wall enzymes are carbohydrate active enzymes that contain a putative Carbohydrate Binding Module (CBM) in their structures. The main function of these non-catalitic modules is to facilitate the interaction between the enzyme and its substrate. Expansins are non-hydrolytic proteins present in the cell wall, and their structure includes a CBM in the C-terminal that bind to cell wall polymers such as cellulose, hemicelluloses and pectins. We studied the ability of the Expansin2 CBM (CBMFaEXP2) from strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa, Duch) to modify the cell wall of Arabidopsis thaliana. Plants overexpressing CBMFaEXP2 were characterized phenotypically and biochemically. Transgenic plants were taller than wild type, possibly owing to a faster growth of the main stem. Cell walls of CBMFaEXP2-expressing plants were thicker and contained higher amount of pectins. Lower activity of a set of enzymes involved in cell wall degradation (PG, ß-Gal, ß-Xyl) was found, and the expression of the corresponding genes (AtPG, Atß-Gal, Atß-Xyl5) was reduced also. In addition, a decrease in the expression of two A. thaliana Expansin genes (AtEXP5 and AtEXP8) was observed. Transgenic plants were more resistant to Botrytis cinerea infection than wild type, possibly as a consequence of higher cell wall integrity. Our results support the hypothesis that the overexpression of a putative CBM is able to modify plant cell wall structure leading to modulation of wall loosening and plant growth. These findings might offer a tool to controlling physiological processes where cell wall disassembly is relevant, such as fruit softening.

Characterization of the Arabidopsis thaliana E3 ubiquitin-ligase AtSINAL7 and identification of the ubiquitination sites.

Protein ubiquitination leading to degradation by the proteasome is an important mechanism in regulating key cellular functions. Protein ubiquitination is carried out by a three step process involving ubiquitin (Ub) activation by a E1 enzyme, the transfer of Ub to a protein E2, finally an ubiquitin ligase E3 catalyzes the transfer of the Ub peptide to an acceptor protein. The E3 component is responsible for the specific recognition of the target, making the unveiling of E3 components essential to understand the mechanisms regulating fundamental cell processes through the protein degradation pathways. The Arabidopsis thaliana seven in absentia-like 7 (AtSINAL7) gene encodes for a protein with characteristics from a C3HC4-type E3 ubiquitin ligase. We demonstrate here that AtSINAL7 protein is indeed an E3 protein ligase based on the self-ubiquitination in vitro assay. This activity is dependent of the presence of a Lys residue in position 124. We also found that higher AtSINAL7 transcript levels are present in tissues undergoing active cell division during floral development. An interesting observation is the circadian expression pattern of AtSINAL7 mRNA in floral buds. Furthermore, UV-B irradiation induces the expression of this transcript indicating that AtSINAL7 may be involved in a wide range of different cell processes.