Proceedings of the XLV Italian Society of Agricultural Genetics - SIGA Annual Congress

Salsomaggiore Terme, Italy - 26/29 September, 2001

ISBN 88-900622-1-5

Poster Abstract

GENOMICS OF PLANT GSTS

SORANZO N., PARISE P., FROVA C.

Dipartimento di Genetica e di Biologia dei Microrganismi, Università degli Studi di Milano

The evolution of large gene families represents a subject of broad importance although still relatively poorly understood Recent evidence suggests that the family of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) encompasses over 40 members. In consideration of the ubiquitous expression and broad substrate specificity displayed by different members of the family, GSTs represent a particularly appealing study system. The GST activity is indeed induced in response to various sources of biotic and abiotic stress, including pathogen attack, chemical stress due to xenobiotic compounds and oxidative stress caused by heavy metals.

We are currently investigating the genomic organisation of GSTs in different monocotiledonous and dicotyledonous species, particularly for the two model species rice and Arabidopsis. A number of genes has been identified for the two species within sequence databases and EST collections. Their genomic structure and evolutionary relationships are investigated using bio-informatic tools. Finally, an attempt is made to correlate evolutionary closeness among members of the family and their expression patterns produced in response to various sources of chemical stress.