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Research ArticleResearch Article
Open Access

BARREN STALK FASTIGIATE1 Is an AT-Hook Protein Required for the Formation of Maize Ears

Andrea Gallavotti, Simon Malcomber, Craig Gaines, Sharon Stanfield, Clinton Whipple, Elizabeth Kellogg, Robert J. Schmidt
Andrea Gallavotti
aSection of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0116
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  • For correspondence: agallavotti@ucsd.edu
Simon Malcomber
bDepartment of Biological Sciences, California State University Long Beach, Long Beach, California 90840
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Craig Gaines
aSection of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0116
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Sharon Stanfield
aSection of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0116
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Clinton Whipple
aSection of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0116
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Elizabeth Kellogg
cDepartment of Biology, University of Missouri, St. Louis, Missouri 63121
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Robert J. Schmidt
aSection of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0116
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Published May 2011. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1105/tpc.111.084590

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  • © 2011 American Society of Plant Biologists

Abstract

Ears are the seed-bearing inflorescences of maize (Zea mays) plants and represent a crucial component of maize yield. The first step in the formation of ears is the initiation of axillary meristems in the axils of developing leaves. In the classic maize mutant barren stalk fastigiate1 (baf1), first discovered in the 1950s, ears either do not form or, if they do, are partially fused to the main stalk. We positionally cloned Baf1 and found that it encodes a transcriptional regulator containing an AT-hook DNA binding motif. Single coorthologs of Baf1 are found in syntenic regions of brachypodium (Brachypodium distachyon), rice (Oryza sativa), and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), suggesting that the gene is likely present in all cereal species. Protein–protein interaction assays suggest that BAF1 is capable of forming homodimers and heterodimers with other members of the AT-hook family. Another transcriptional regulator required for ear initiation is the basic helix-loop-helix protein BARREN STALK1 (BA1). Genetic and expression analyses suggest that Baf1 is required to reach a threshold level of Ba1 expression for the initiation of maize ears. We propose that Baf1 functions in the demarcation of a boundary region essential for the specification of a stem cell niche.

  • Received February 23, 2011.
  • Revised April 7, 2011.
  • Accepted April 17, 2011.
  • Published May 3, 2011.

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BARREN STALK FASTIGIATE1 Is an AT-Hook Protein Required for the Formation of Maize Ears
Andrea Gallavotti, Simon Malcomber, Craig Gaines, Sharon Stanfield, Clinton Whipple, Elizabeth Kellogg, Robert J. Schmidt
The Plant Cell May 2011, 23 (5) 1756-1771; DOI: 10.1105/tpc.111.084590

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BARREN STALK FASTIGIATE1 Is an AT-Hook Protein Required for the Formation of Maize Ears
Andrea Gallavotti, Simon Malcomber, Craig Gaines, Sharon Stanfield, Clinton Whipple, Elizabeth Kellogg, Robert J. Schmidt
The Plant Cell May 2011, 23 (5) 1756-1771; DOI: 10.1105/tpc.111.084590
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The Plant Cell Online: 23 (5)
The Plant Cell
Vol. 23, Issue 5
May 2011
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