Characterization and expression of the knox1gene in relation to leaf shape in some species of Araliaceae in Egypt

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, Egypt

2 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Egypt

3 Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Egypt

10.21608/mjb.2022.459792

Abstract

The Araliaceae family has 47 genera and more than 1,350 species. In several genera, leaf forms of Araliaceae species have a tremendous array, e.g., simple, palmately lobed, palmately compound or up to three times pinnate, in several genera. Here, the expression of the Knotted1-Like homeobox (KNOX1) transcription factor gene is measured in relation to leaf shape in 12 plant species from the Araliaceae family in Egypt. Results obtained from real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) showed variable expression levels among the plant samples under study. High expression levels of KNOX1 genes were seen in compound pinnate-leaved plants (Polyscias fruticosa, P. guilfoylei, and P. scutellaria), whereas relatively low expression levels were seen in lobed- leafed plants (Hedera helix and Tetrapanx papyrifer). The RT-qPCR data indicate that the expression level of KNOX1 in the leaves of species studied coincides with the degree of leaf lamina serration and complexity. Genomic fragments of KNOX1 were also amplified from the 12 plant samples of Araliaceae under study. The PCR product amplified from plant sample 2 (Hedera helix) was eluted, purified, and sequenced. The nucleotide sequence of the KNOX1 gene fragment was aligned with some reference genes in GenBank and showed a high degree of sequence similarity, indicating a common structure and function of the KNOX1 gene in higher plants.

Keywords

Mansoura Journal of Biology
Volume 60, Issue 7
December 2022
Pages 54-60

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