ARS | Publication request: IDENTIFICATION OF GENES INDUCED IN EMERGING TILLERS OF WILD OAT USING ARABIDOPSIS MICROARRAYS

Submitted to: Weed Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: December 17, 2002
Publication Date: July 10, 2003
Citation: Horvath, D.P., Schaffer, R., Wisman, E. 2003. Identification of genes induced in emerging tillers of wild oat (Avena fatua) using Arabidopsis microarrays. Weed Science. 51:503-508.

Interpretive Summary: This paper details the use of microarrays with over 11,000 Arabidopsis cDNAs for studying growth and development in tillers of wild oat. We show that we can follow changes in gene expression in wild oat using publicly available Arabidopsis microarrays. The changes in gene expression that were observed were consistent with a transition from a non-growing to a growing state. We also show that we can visualize and identify signaling pathways that are regulated during growth induction by comparing expression patterns of genes induced in wild oat to those induced after various treatments in Arabidopsis. These finding show that microarray technology and information developed for research on the model plant Arabidopsis can be directly applied to weeds and other poorly characterized plants.

Technical Abstract: We have hybridized Arabidopsis cDNA microarrays with probe made from mature leaves and emerging tillers of wild oat. Over 23% of the >11,000 cDNAs on the array hybridized to the wild oat probe. Transcription patterns detected by hybridization to the arrays are indicators for physiological processes in the tissues tested. Coordinated expression patterns for these genes in Arabidopsis indicate common signals involved in their regulation. The results demonstrate that probing cDNA-based arrays from well-characterized species can provide valuable insight into the signal transduction processes regulating growth and development of poorly characterized species.