Cotton fiber transcriptional factors

Abstract

Novel DNA constructs are provided which may be used as molecular probes or inserted into a plant host to provide for modification of transcription of a DNA sequence of interest in cotton fiber, particularly in very early fiber development. The DNA constructs comprise a cotton fiber transcriptional initiation regulatory region associated with a gene which is expressed in cotton fiber.

1 . A DNA sequence comprising as operably joined components in the direction of transcription, a cotton fiber transcriptional factor and an open reading frame encoding a protein of interest, wherein said transcriptional factor is selected from the 4-4 and the rac promoter sequences.  
     
     
         2 . The DNA Sequence according to  claim 1 , further comprising a transport signal encoding sequence from a plant nuclear-encoded gene.  
     
     
         3 . The DNA sequence according to  claim 2 , wherein said transport signal encoding sequence comprises a plastid transit peptid.  
     
     
         4 . The DNA sequence according to  claim 1 , wherein said transport signal encoding sequence encodes a signal peptide which provides for transport across the rough endoplasmic reticulum.  
     
     
         5 . The DNA sequence according to  claim 4 , wherein said sequence further comprises, 3′ to said open reading frame, a vacuolar localization signal.  
     
     
         6 . The DNA sequence of  claim 1  wherein said pigment is melanin or indigo.  
     
     
         7 . The DNA sequence of  claim 6  wherein said open reading frame is from a bacterial gene.  
     
     
         8 . The DNA sequence of  claim 7  wherein said bacterial gene is selected from the group consisting of ORF438, tyrA, anthocyanin R gene, anthocyanin C1 gene, pig, and tna.  
     
     
         9 . A DNA construct comprising a promoter for transcription in a plant cell operably joined to said DNA sequence of  claim 1 .  
     
     
         10 . The DNA construct of  claim 9  wherein said plant cell is a cotton fiber cell.  
     
     
         11 . The DNA construct of  claim 10  wherein said promoter is a tomato 4-4 and rac promoter.  
     
     
         13 . A plant cell comprising a DNA construct of  claim 9 .  
     
     
         14 . A plant comprising a cell of  claim 13 .  
     
     
         15 . A method of modifying fiber phenotype in a cotton plant, said method comprising: 
 transforming a plant cell with DNA comprising a construct for expression of a protein in a pigment biosynthesis pathway, wherein said construct comprises as operably joined components:    a transcriptional initiation region functional in cells of said plant tissue,    an open reading frame encoding a protein of interest, and a transcriptional termination region functional in cells of said plant tissue, 
 wherein said plant tissue comprises a substrate of said protein; and  
 growing said plant cell to produce a plant comprising said tissue, wherein said protein reacts with said substrate to produce said pigment.  
   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15  further comprising a transport signal encoding sequence from a plant nuclear-encoded gene.  
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15  wherein said transport signal encoding sequence encodes a signal peptide which provides for transport across the rough endoplasmic reticulum.  
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16  wherein said DNA comprises constructs for expression of two proteins in a pigment biosynthesis pathway, wherein each of said constructs comprises components i) through iv), and wherein said two proteins are not encoded by the same gene.  
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17  wherein said DNA comprises constructs for expression of two proteins in a pigment biosynthesis pathway, wherein each of said constructs comprises components i) through iv), and wherein said two proteins are not encoded by the same gene.  
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18  or  19  wherein said pigment is melanin and said proteins are encoded by tyrA and ORF438.  
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18  wherein said pigment is indigo and said proteins are tna and pig.  
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 18  wherein said pigment is anythocyanin and said constructs comprise the anthocyanin R and C1 regulatory genes.  
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 15  wherein plant tissue is a cotton burr.  
     
     
         25 . A recombinant DNA construct comprising the cotton tissue transcriptional sequence shown in FIG. 2.  
     
     
         26 . A recombinant DNA construct comprising the cotton tissue transcriptional sequence shown in FIG. 5.  
     
     
         27 . An isolated DNA encoding sequence of FIG. 1.  
     
     
         28 . An isolated DNA encoding sequence of FIG. 4.  
     
     
         29 . The method of  claim 15  wherein said protein of interest is involved in the synthesis of a plant hormone.