Journal article

Isolation and characterization of a novel ammonium overly sensitive mutant, amos2, in Arabidopsis thaliana

G Li, G Dong, B Li, Q Li, HJ Kronzucker, W Shi

Planta | SPRINGER | Published : 2012

Abstract

Ammonium (NH 4 +) toxicity is a significant agricultural problem globally, compromising crop growth and productivity in many areas. However, the molecular mechanisms of NH 4 + toxicity are still poorly understood, in part due to a lack of valuable genetic resources. Here, a novel Arabidopsis mutant, amos2 (ammonium overly sensitive 2), displaying hypersensitivity to NH 4 + in both shoots and roots, was isolated. The mutant exhibits the hallmarks of NH 4 + toxicity at significantly elevated levels: severely suppressed shoot biomass, increased leaf chlorosis, and inhibition of lateral root formation. Amos2 hypersensitivity is associated with excessive NH 4 + accumulation in shoots and a reduct..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Grants

Awarded by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada


Funding Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Dr. Jianru Zuo, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, for kind provision of Arabidopsis seeds mutagenized with T-DNA transformation, Dr. Zuhua He, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, for technical support in gene mapping. This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2007CB109303), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30771285), and the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC, Discovery Grant 217277-2009).