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. 1988 Nov;120(3):767–777. doi: 10.1093/genetics/120.3.767

Two Mutations in a Maize Bronze-1 Allele Caused by Transposable Elements of the Ac-Ds Family Alter the Quantity and Quality of the Gene Product

J W Schiefelbein 1, D B Furtek 1, H K Dooner 1, O E Nelson-Jr 1
PMCID: PMC1203555  PMID: 2465200

Abstract

The Dissociation (Ds) mutant, Bz-wm, of the maize bronze-1 (bz) locus conditions a leaky phenotype. Plants carrying this mutant allele synthesize a low amount of an altered Bz gene product, which leads to reduced anthocyanin pigmentation in the seed. The molecular analysis reported here shows that the Bz-wm mutant has a 406-bp Ds1 insertion located 63 bp 5' to the start of Bz transcription. Furthermore, the Bz-wm allele contains three additional base pairs within the second exon, relative to the wild-type Bz allele. These additional nucleotides are believed to be derived from the 8-bp target site duplication created by an Activator (Ac) element in a previous allele in the series. The biochemical and molecular analyses of Bz-wm and revertants of Bz-wm indicate that the three additional nucleotides are responsible for the altered enzyme stability, while the Ds1 element affects the steady-state level of Bz-specific protein and RNA. Since the two mutations present in the Bz-wm mutant were each caused by the action of the Ac-Ds transposable element system, these results provide new insights into the ways that transposable elements can modify maize gene expression.

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Selected References

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