Plant microRNAs play important roles in plant growth and development. Here we investigated the roles of miRNAs in the plant abiotic stress, development and viral infection. MicroRNA membrane array analysis using five different abiotic stress treatments resulted in the identification of 8 novel stress inducible miRNA-families. Functional studies on novel stress inducible miR168 revealed its functional relation with abiotic stress. Over expression of miR168 in Arabidopsis showed upregulation of four stress related miRNAs (miR163, miR167, miR398 and miR408). Analysis of 9 independent transgenic lines showed induction of miR398, an oxidative stress responsive miRNA with a corresponding down regulation of its target genes. Heavy metal oxidative stress tolerance bioassays confirmed the susceptibility of transgenics compared to the wild types indicating the fact that the miR168 is indirectly involved in plant abiotic stress by inducing other stress responsive miRNAs. MicroRNAs are highly conserved across the plant kingdom. A miRNA atlas was drafted for different tomato organs and fruit stages using the known miRNA sequences from different plants species. A large variation in both number and level of miRNA expression pattern was observed among different organs as well as among fruit stages. In the present investigation, we have found a window of expression for different miRNAs during the fruit development. A gradual decrease in the expression levels of miR160h, miR167a and miR399d and a gradual increase in miR164a have been noticed towards the fruit maturation while miR398b showed dual peaks during fruit development indicating a potential role of various miRNAs in fruit development and maturation. Sonchus yellow net virus (SYNV) infected Nicotinana benthamiana leaves showed severe disease symptoms at two weeks post infection (WPI) and gradually recovered from the SYNV infection after 4-5 WPI correlating with the overall miRNA levels. The miRNA array and northern analysis showed an overall reduction of miRNA biogenesis during 2WPI followed by restoration to normal levels supporting the idea that the SYNV indeed interfered with the host miRNA levels which caused the symptoms and recovery phenotypes. Overall studies on plant abiotic stress, development and viral infection showed important roles of miRNAs in different aspects of plant life.

No description available.

O sistema vascular de monocotiledôneas, incluindo Commelinaceae, tem sido estudado desde o sec. 17, sendo uma das maiores dificuldades em estudar esse sistema a grande quantidade de feixes vasculares e a complexidade de suas conexões, especialmente nas espécies que possuem plexo vascular nodal. As variações no sistema vascular não se restringem à relação caule/folha, uma vez que as raízes também podem apresentar certo grau de complexidade. Neste trabalho buscamos entender e apresentar uma arquitetura vascular em Commelinaceae baseado na reconstrução direta de análises tridimensionais dos sistemas caulinar e radicular. Para isto, foram analisadas amostras de caule (20 espécies) e raiz tuberosa (7 espécies) da família Commelinaceae, a partir de representantes das duas tribos de Commelinoideae (Commelineae e Tradescantieae). O rastreamento do sistema vascular no ápice caulinar mostrou que os feixes vasculares caulinares (em fase procambial) começam a ser distinguidos no 4º fitômero, a partir do ápice caulinar. A atividade meristemática do periciclo e o incremento foliar foram os principais fatores de espessamento primário do caule. A partir de análises tridimensionais complementares, como microscopia confocal, microtomografia computadorizada,vetorização gráfica e diafanização whole mount foram construídos modelos tridimensionais da arquitetura vascular em Commelinaceae. Nestes modelos foi possível verificar uma categoria de feixes ainda não relatada para Commelinaceae e que os feixes periféricos não são interrompidos ou terminam cegamente na periferia da medula. Três padrões de plexo vascular nodal são propostos, nos quais todos os feixes vasculares se conectam por meio de traqueídes. Para raiz tuberosa, dados morfométricos foram obtidos com auxílio do software ImageJ e vetorização gráfica foi utilizada para rastreamento do sistema vascular. Os resultados mostram quatro variações anatômicas do cilindro vascular e a quantificação morfométrica das características responsáveis por estas variações / The vascular system of monocotyledons, including Commelinaceae, has been studied since 17 th century, and one of the greatest difficulties in studying these systems is the great number of vascular bundles and the complexity of their connections, especially the species that have vascular nodal plexus. The variations in the vascular system are not restricted to the stem-leaf relation, since the roots can also present some degree of complexity. In this work we seek to understand and present a vascular architecture for Commelinaceae based on the direct reconstruction of 3D analyzes of shoot and root systems. Samples of stem (20 species) and tuberous root (7 species) of the Commelinaceae were analyzed including two tribes of Commelinoideae (Commelineae e Tradescantieae). The tracing of the vascular system in the shoot apex showed that the vascular bundles (in the procambial phase) begin to be distinguished in the 4th phytomer, from the apex. The meristematic activity of the pericycle (in the procambial phase) and the leaf increment were the main factors of primary stem thickening. From complementary 3D analyzes, such as confocal microscopy, computer microtomography, graphic vectorization and whole mount diaphanization, three-dimensional models of the vascular architecture were constructed from Commelinaceae. In these models it was possible to verify a category of bundles not yet reported for Commelinaceae and that the peripheral bundles are not interrupted or end blindly in the periphery of the vascular cylinder. Three patterns of nodal vascular plexus are proposed, in which all vascular bundles are connected by means of tracheids. For tuberous root, morphometric data were obtained by the aid of ImageJ software and graphic vectorization was used to trace the vascular system. The results show four anatomical variations of the vascular cylinder and the morphometric quantification of the characteristics responsible for these variations

O clima classificado como Cwa é considerado marginal para a cultura da bananeira, pois apresenta inverno típico com baixas temperaturas e deficiência hídrica. O objetivo desse trabalho foi estudar o desenvolvimento da bananeira cv. Nanicão (Musa sp. AAA) em clima Cwa. Foram realizados dois experimentos, o primeiro para verificar a formação do cacho da bananeira desde a emissão da inflorescência até a colheita. No segundo experimento avaliou-se os quatro primeiros ciclos, com o objetivo de verificar a variação da duração do ciclo, produção e rendimento anual de cada ciclo. O experimento foi realizado em bananal com 5 anos de idade localizado no município Tiête SP. O bananal corresponde a uma área de 16,0 hectares com plantas oriundas de mudas micropropagadas, espaçamento de 2,4 m x 2,00m, irrigada por aspersão. Os dados meteorológicos foram retirados do Centro Integrado de Informações Agrometeorológicas. Para a condução do experimento 1 foram avaliadas 1104 famílias, no período de maio de 2010 a julho de 2011. Os fatores em estudo foram: época de emissão da inflorescência, duração do intervalo entre a emergência da inflorescência e colheita (I - C), quantidade de emissão de inflorescência nas diferentes épocas, época de colheita, massas dos cachos e produção. No segundo experimento avaliou-se 16,0 hectares de bananeira no período de setembro de 2005 a agosto de 2011. Avaliou - se a duração do ciclo de produção e o período da colheita de cada ciclo, bem como a produção e rendimento médio anual/ha. Foi observado no estudo que a produção de banana nesse tipo de clima é marcada por oscilações. As maiores taxas de emissões de inflorescências e menores durações de I-C ocorrem na época mais quente e chuvosa e taxas inferiores de emissões e durações de I-C foram maiores na época fria e seca do ano. As massas dos cachos e consequentemente as produções variam ao longo do ano, massas superiores são encontradas na época fria e seca e menores massas ocorrem na época quente do ano. Os quatro primeiros ciclos de produção apresentam variações na duração total do ciclo bem como no período de colheita, em consequência o rendimento médio anual de cada ciclo varia, de modo que, a partir do terceiro ciclo o rendimento médio decresce e estabiliza-se devido à extensão da duração do ciclo de produção. / The climate classificated by Cwa is not considerate totally appropriate for banana crop, because has the typical dry winter with low temperature, conditions that injure the plant development. The objective of this research was to verify the banana development cv. Nanicão (Musa sp. AAA) in Cwa climate. Two experiments were performed, the first one verified the development banana bunch formation, since the inflorescence emission until the harvest. The second experiments evaluated the first four cycles, aimed to verify the cycles variation, production and annual yield per cycle. The experiment was developed in field banana Nanicão with 5 years from planting, localized in Tiête São Paulo city. The total area is 16 ha with plants originated by micropropagated seedlings, spacing of 2,4m x 2,00m, irrigated by sprinkling. The meteorogical data was offered by Integrated Centre of Agrometeorogical Information. For the conduction the experiment 1 was evaluated 1104 families in period from May 2010 to July 2011. The factors studied were: epoch of inflorescence emission, time interval between the inflorescence emissions to harvest (I-H), amounts of inflorescences in different epochs of year, time of harvest, mass of bunch and production. In the second experiments aimed the production in total area of 16 ha, between September 2005 to August 2011. Evaluated the cycle time, the period of harvest, the production and medium annual yield per hectare. It was observed in this study the banana Nanicão production in this kind of climate is characterized for great oscillation in the yield during the production cycle. The higher rates of inflorescence emission and lower duration of I-H occurred in the hottest time of the year. The bunch mass and production vary throughout the year. The bunch mass biggest and production occurred in cooler time of the year. The first four production cycles vary a well as the time interval harvest in consequence the annual yield per cycle, so that from third cycle the medium annual yield decrease due to the extension of cycle duration.

A adubação nitrogenada em plantas de café (Coffea arabica) é importante principalmente para no início de desenvolvimento e de produção. O efeito da adubação é bastante pronunciado quando se aplicam doses do fertilizante na tentativa de maximizar a produtividade de café. Com o objetivo de caracterizar o crescimento e desenvolvimento de plantas de café sob efeito da adubação nitrogenada, um experimento de campo foi conduzido na área experimental do Departamento de Engenharia Rural da Esalq, Universidade de São Paulo, em Piracicaba-SP, (Latitude: 23o43'33" Sul. Longitude: 47o38'00" Oeste. Altitude: 576 metros). O projeto de pesquisa foi conduzido durante duas estações consecutivas (de 1 de Setembro de 2003 a 1 de Setembro de 2004 e de 1 Setembro de 2004 a 1 de Julho de 2005). O presente trabalho visa caracterizar a variação temporal do acúmulo da matéria seca e da taxa de crescimento da cultura, além de verificar o efeito da adubação nitrogenada. A dinâmica do nitrogênio foi estudada em plantas de café (cultivar 'Catuaí Vermelho IAC 44') transplantadas em maio de 2001, utilizando-se diferentes doses de nitrogênio. O espaçamento foi de 1,75 x 0,75m. O delineamento estatístico estabelecido foi inteiramente casualizado, com três tratamentos (níveis de nitrogênio) e cinco repetições. Em intervalos periódicos e regulares (aproximadamente a cada 60 dias), uma planta por parcela foi coletada rente ao solo. Dados referentes à altura da planta, diâmetro médio inferior e superior da copa e altura da primeira inserção foram utilizados para determinar o volume de copa de cada planta. Para o estudo do acúmulo de massa de matéria seca, as diferentes partes da planta foram separadas (caule, ramos, folhas e frutos). O índice de área foliar foi obtido através dos valores observados e calculados pelo integrador de área foliar. Ao final de dois anos consecutivos, procurou-se estabelecer, através dos resultados, modelo empírico para caracterização de crescimento e desenvolvimento da cultura. Em função dos resultados obtidos, pode-se concluir que: (i) o aumento da produção de massa de matéria seca total está condicionado a um incremento da produção de massa de matéria seca de folhas do cafeeiro; (ii) a adubação nitrogenada propicia, no ano fenológico de baixa produtividade, maior produção e retenção de folhas àquelas plantas que receberam maior quantidade de nitrogênio, resultando assim, em maior emissão, pegamento de flores e produtividade no próximo ano; (iii) as plantas que receberam menor quantidade de nitrogênio, no primeiro ano fenológico de baixa produtividade, apresentam maior potencial de produção de matéria seca total somente no segundo ano fenológico, o que resulta em maior produção de ramos vegetativos ativos; e (iv) para a cultura de café em formação, a caracterização da variação temporal do acúmulo de massa de matéria seca deve contemplar modelos diferentes para os anos fenológicos de alta e baixa produtividade. / Nitrogen fertilization for coffee plants (Coffea arabica) is mainly of importance for crops at the beginning of development and production. The effect of the fertilization is sufficiently sharp when rates of the fertilizer are chosen to maximize the productivity of the crop coffe. With the purpose of characterizing the growth and development of coffee plants under the effect of nitrogen fertilization, a field experiment was carried out in Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil (Latitude: 23o43'33" South; Longitude: 47o38'00" West; Altitude: 576 meters). The research project was conducted during two consecutive coffee growing seasons (from 1 September 2003 to 1 September 2004 and from 1 September 2004 to 1 July 2005), to characterize the variation of the accumulation of dry matter and rates of plant growth, besides verifying the effect of the nitrogen fertilization. The dynamic of nitrogen was studied in plants (cultivar 'Catuaí Vermelho IAC 44'), transplanted in May 2001, using nitrogen fertilizer. The spacing between rows ant plants is 1.75m and 0.75m, respectively. The established statistical design was completely randomic, with three levels of nitrogen (treatments) and five replications. In periodic and regular intervals of about 60 days, plants were collected cutting the shoot at soil surface. In function of the gotten results, it can be concluded that: (i) the increase of the production of total dry matter is conditional to an increment of the production of leaf dry matter of the coffee tree; (ii) the nitrogen fertilization propitiates, in the phenological year of low yield, bigger leaf production and retention to those plants that had received greater amount of nitrogen, thus resulting, in bigger emission, flowering and productivity in the next year; (iii) the plants that had received minor amount of nitrogen, in the first phenological year of low yield, they presented higher production of total dry matter in the phenological year, what it increases the production of active vegetative branches; and (iv) for coffee crop in formation, the characterization of the variation of the accumulation of dry matter must contemplate different models for the phenological years of high and low yield.

A adubação nitrogenada em plantas de café (Coffea arabica) é importante principalmente para no início de desenvolvimento e de produção. O efeito da adubação é bastante pronunciado quando se aplicam doses do fertilizante na tentativa de maximizar a produtividade de café. Com o objetivo de caracterizar o crescimento e desenvolvimento de plantas de café sob efeito da adubação nitrogenada, um experimento de campo foi conduzido na área experimental do Departamento de Engenharia Rural da Esalq, Universidade de São Paulo, em Piracicaba-SP, (Latitude: 23o43'33" Sul. Longitude: 47o38'00" Oeste. Altitude: 576 metros). O projeto de pesquisa foi conduzido durante duas estações consecutivas (de 1 de Setembro de 2003 a 1 de Setembro de 2004 e de 1 Setembro de 2004 a 1 de Julho de 2005). O presente trabalho visa caracterizar a variação temporal do acúmulo da matéria seca e da taxa de crescimento da cultura, além de verificar o efeito da adubação nitrogenada. A dinâmica do nitrogênio foi estudada em plantas de café (cultivar 'Catuaí Vermelho IAC 44') transplantadas em maio de 2001, utilizando-se diferentes doses de nitrogênio. O espaçamento foi de 1,75 x 0,75m. O delineamento estatístico estabelecido foi inteiramente casualizado, com três tratamentos (níveis de nitrogênio) e cinco repetições. Em intervalos periódicos e regulares (aproximadamente a cada 60 dias), uma planta por parcela foi coletada rente ao solo. Dados referentes à altura da planta, diâmetro médio inferior e superior da copa e altura da primeira inserção foram utilizados para determinar o volume de copa de cada planta. Para o estudo do acúmulo de massa de matéria seca, as diferentes partes da planta foram separadas (caule, ramos, folhas e frutos). O índice de área foliar foi obtido através dos valores observados e calculados pelo integrador de área foliar. Ao final de dois anos consecutivos, procurou-se estabelecer, através dos resultados, modelo empírico para caracterização de crescimento e desenvolvimento da cultura. Em função dos resultados obtidos, pode-se concluir que: (i) o aumento da produção de massa de matéria seca total está condicionado a um incremento da produção de massa de matéria seca de folhas do cafeeiro; (ii) a adubação nitrogenada propicia, no ano fenológico de baixa produtividade, maior produção e retenção de folhas àquelas plantas que receberam maior quantidade de nitrogênio, resultando assim, em maior emissão, pegamento de flores e produtividade no próximo ano; (iii) as plantas que receberam menor quantidade de nitrogênio, no primeiro ano fenológico de baixa produtividade, apresentam maior potencial de produção de matéria seca total somente no segundo ano fenológico, o que resulta em maior produção de ramos vegetativos ativos; e (iv) para a cultura de café em formação, a caracterização da variação temporal do acúmulo de massa de matéria seca deve contemplar modelos diferentes para os anos fenológicos de alta e baixa produtividade. / Nitrogen fertilization for coffee plants (Coffea arabica) is mainly of importance for crops at the beginning of development and production. The effect of the fertilization is sufficiently sharp when rates of the fertilizer are chosen to maximize the productivity of the crop coffe. With the purpose of characterizing the growth and development of coffee plants under the effect of nitrogen fertilization, a field experiment was carried out in Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil (Latitude: 23o43'33" South; Longitude: 47o38'00" West; Altitude: 576 meters). The research project was conducted during two consecutive coffee growing seasons (from 1 September 2003 to 1 September 2004 and from 1 September 2004 to 1 July 2005), to characterize the variation of the accumulation of dry matter and rates of plant growth, besides verifying the effect of the nitrogen fertilization. The dynamic of nitrogen was studied in plants (cultivar 'Catuaí Vermelho IAC 44'), transplanted in May 2001, using nitrogen fertilizer. The spacing between rows ant plants is 1.75m and 0.75m, respectively. The established statistical design was completely randomic, with three levels of nitrogen (treatments) and five replications. In periodic and regular intervals of about 60 days, plants were collected cutting the shoot at soil surface. In function of the gotten results, it can be concluded that: (i) the increase of the production of total dry matter is conditional to an increment of the production of leaf dry matter of the coffee tree; (ii) the nitrogen fertilization propitiates, in the phenological year of low yield, bigger leaf production and retention to those plants that had received greater amount of nitrogen, thus resulting, in bigger emission, flowering and productivity in the next year; (iii) the plants that had received minor amount of nitrogen, in the first phenological year of low yield, they presented higher production of total dry matter in the phenological year, what it increases the production of active vegetative branches; and (iv) for coffee crop in formation, the characterization of the variation of the accumulation of dry matter must contemplate different models for the phenological years of high and low yield.

<p>There are 42 members of the homeodomain-leucine zipper (HDZip) family of transcription factors in <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>. This thesis focuses on the functional analysis of one member of this family, ATHB16, and on the biochemical properties of HDZip proteins. </p><p>To assess the function of the <i>ATHB16</i> gene, the expression of <i>ATHB16</i> was altered in transgenic Arabidopsis plants by using sense and antisense RNA constructs under the control of the 35S promoter. The reciprocal phenotypic effects associated with elevated and reduced levels of <i>ATHB16</i> expression suggested that, in wild-type plants, ATHB16 acts as a mediator of blue and red light effects on the regulation of plant growth and the timing of the floral transition. </p><p>In wild-type Arabidopsis, expression of <i>ATHB16</i> is high in leaves, intermediate in adult roots and inflorescences, and low in stems and siliques. The expression of <i>ATHB16</i> in the root is markedly increased in response to exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) treatment, but is reduced in the ABA response mutants <i>abil </i>and <i>abi2</i>, suggesting that <i>ATHB16</i> may be involved in ABA signal transduction. This hypothesis was corroborated by observations of alterations in sensitivity to ABA inhibition of root growth in seedlings of a T-DNA insertion mutant of <i>ATHB16</i> and of transgenic plants with elevated <i>ATHB16</i> levels. </p><p>HDZip proteins bind DNA as dimers. DNA-binding studies showed that different HDZip proteins interact with very similar target sequences <i>in vitro</i> and that they selectively form heterodimers with each other. For example, it was demonstrated that ATHB16 can heterodimerize with ATHB6 and ATHB7 in yeast and with ATHB5 <i>in vitro</i>, suggesting that ATHB16 may interact with other HDZip proteins in Arabidopsis. This interaction may have functional significance, since it may provide a mechanism for the plant to integrate different input signals, like light of different spectral qualities and water availability in the regulation of its growth. </p>

There are 42 members of the homeodomain-leucine zipper (HDZip) family of transcription factors in Arabidopsis thaliana. This thesis focuses on the functional analysis of one member of this family, ATHB16, and on the biochemical properties of HDZip proteins. To assess the function of the ATHB16 gene, the expression of ATHB16 was altered in transgenic Arabidopsis plants by using sense and antisense RNA constructs under the control of the 35S promoter. The reciprocal phenotypic effects associated with elevated and reduced levels of ATHB16 expression suggested that, in wild-type plants, ATHB16 acts as a mediator of blue and red light effects on the regulation of plant growth and the timing of the floral transition. In wild-type Arabidopsis, expression of ATHB16 is high in leaves, intermediate in adult roots and inflorescences, and low in stems and siliques. The expression of ATHB16 in the root is markedly increased in response to exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) treatment, but is reduced in the ABA response mutants abil and abi2, suggesting that ATHB16 may be involved in ABA signal transduction. This hypothesis was corroborated by observations of alterations in sensitivity to ABA inhibition of root growth in seedlings of a T-DNA insertion mutant of ATHB16 and of transgenic plants with elevated ATHB16 levels. HDZip proteins bind DNA as dimers. DNA-binding studies showed that different HDZip proteins interact with very similar target sequences in vitro and that they selectively form heterodimers with each other. For example, it was demonstrated that ATHB16 can heterodimerize with ATHB6 and ATHB7 in yeast and with ATHB5 in vitro, suggesting that ATHB16 may interact with other HDZip proteins in Arabidopsis. This interaction may have functional significance, since it may provide a mechanism for the plant to integrate different input signals, like light of different spectral qualities and water availability in the regulation of its growth.

Studies on epidermal cell fate determination have been important for gaining insight into the genetic and molecular mechanisms leading to the differentiation and patterning of cells. In Arabidopsis, the organization and development of many epidermal characters including trichomes, root hairs and the seed coat have been found to be controlled by a single combinatorial transcription factor complex consisting of a WD-repeat containing protein, Transparent Testa Glabra 1 (TTG1), and various MYB and bHLH proteins. The work here consists of identification of Glabra2 (GL2) and Transparent Testa Glabra2 (TTG2) as direct transcriptional targets of the TTG1 combinatorial complex, further characterization of GL2 function, and identification of transcriptional targets of GL2 and TTG2. Both GL2 and TTG2 are important in the regulation of trichomes, root hairs and seed coat development. vii GL2 has been identified as an important regulator of epidermal cell fate for over fifteen years yet there is little known about its function and only three transcriptional targets are identified, all involved in root hair patterning. Through the examination of its function a nuclear localization signal was verified and shown that GL2 homodimerizes. Through analysis of available expression databases and differential sequence analysis using SOLiD sequencing technology, several direct targets of GL2 and many more possible transcriptional targets of both GL2 and TTG2 were identified in trichomes. Some of these targets are members of the TTG1 complex, and they are all specialized in the maturation of trichomes, suggesting that GL2 switches the focus of the complex by activating the TTG1 complex members involved in maturation of the trichome through a feedback mechanism. Examination of gl2 mutants shows that they do not produce trichome accessory cells which usually surround the trichome. An additional target of GL2 is At5g65300 which when overexpressed results in the elongation and proliferation of trichome accessory cells into a tall pillar of cells. This suggests that GL2 is involved in the regulation of accessory cell development through At5g65300. The work presented here represents important advances of our knowledge of epidermal cell fate through characterization of the major downstream regulators of epidermal development. / text

Les annexines sont définies comme étant des protéines qui se lient de manière calcium-dépendante aux phospholipides membranaires chargés négativement. Elles ont été associées à différents processus biologiques tels les réponses des plantes aux stress biotiques et abiotiques. Nous avons identifié une annexine végétale, appelée Ntann12, dont l’expression est induite après infection des plantes par la bactérie Rhodococcus fascians. <p> Ntann12 possède les domaines caractéristiques des annexines et se lie aux phospholipides chargés négativement, de manière calcium-dépendante. L’expression de Ntann12 est très abondante dans les cellules différentiées des racines, où la protéine a été détectée par immunolocalisation dans le cytosol et dans le noyau. Des analyses par western blot ont montré que l’accroissement relatif de la quantité de protéines liées aux membranes est positivement corrélé à l’augmentation de la concentration en Ca2+. <p> Au niveau physiologique, l'expression de Ntann12 est induite par l’apport exogène d’auxine. Elle est contrôlée dans les racines par un signal induit par la lumière, et provenant des parties aériennes. Le transport polaire de l'auxine a été identifié comme étant le processus cellulaires nécessaires à l'expression de Ntann12 dans les racines. En outre, cette expression est réprimée par les stress salin, osmotique et hydrique. Ces résultats suggèrent que l’annexine Ntann12 est impliquée dans le métabolisme de l’auxine.<p><p>/<p><p>Annexins are defined as calcium-binding proteins, and they have been associated in plants with different biological processes such as responses to biotic and abiotic stress. Ntann12 expression is induced upon infection of tobacco plant by R. fascians. <p> Ntann12 possesses the conserved annexin repeat with the sequence for type II Ca2+-binding site and recombinant as well as native Ntann12 binds to negatively charged phospholipids in a Ca2+-dependent manner. It is mainly expressed in root differentiated cells where the protein was immunolocalized in the cytosol and in the nucleus. Ntann12 was examined by western blot in both microsomal and cytosolic fractions from tobacco roots cells, and was detected in both the cytosol and microsome. The relative increase of Ntann12 proteins associated with the microsome is coupled with an increase in Ca2+ concentration.<p> At the physiological level, Ntann12 expression is induced by exogenous application of auxin, and was found to be regulated in the root system by a light-induced signal coming from plant aerial part and polar auxin transport was identified to be the cellular process required for Ntann12 expression in root cells. Furthermore, Ntann12 expression is down-regulated by salt, osmotic and water stress. These results collectively suggest that the annexin Ntann12 is implicated in auxin metabolism. <p> / Doctorat en Sciences / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished