Site-directed mutagenesis of IRX9, IRX9L and IRX14 proteins involved in xylan biosynthesis: glycosyltransferase activity is not required for IRX9 function in Arabidopsis.

ABSTRACT: Xylans constitute the main non-cellulosic polysaccharide in the secondary cell walls of plants. Several genes predicted to encode glycosyltransferases are required for the synthesis of the xylan backbone even though it is a homopolymer consisting entirely of β-1,4-linked xylose residues. The putative glycosyltransferases IRX9, IRX14, and IRX10 (or the paralogs IRX9L, IRX14L, and IRX10L) are required for xylan backbone synthesis in Arabidopsis. To investigate the function of IRX9, IRX9L, and IRX14, we identified amino acid residues known to be essential for catalytic function in homologous mammalian proteins and generated modified cDNA clones encoding proteins where these residues would be mutated. The mutated gene constructs were used to transform wild-type Arabidopsis plants and the irx9

SUBMITTER: Ren Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4132061 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature