An es-t (early senescence-temporary) mutant, produced by ethylene methylsulfonate treatment of strain Nipponbare, was identified in rice. The leaves of es-t appeared yellow at the seedling stage, and had decreased chlorophyll content. Rust spots were found during growth in es-t, especially at the leaf margin and tip. The plants showed a typical early-senescence phenotype at the milky stage. The leaf surface of es-t appeared smoother than wild-type leaves under a scanning electron microscope, because the leaves lack siliceous protuberances around the stoma. Chloroplasts grow abnormally and are filled with many starch grains in es-t. Paraffin section analysis showed that the development of the sclerenchyma cells and vascular bundles were also abnormal in es-t. Genetic analysis indicated that es-t was controlled by a recessive gene, which was finely mapped to a 42-kb interval on chromosome 5. These results will facilitate the positional cloning and functional studies of the gene.
YANG YaoLongRAO YuChunLIU HuiJuanFANG YunXiaDONG GuoJunHUANG LiChaoLENG YuJiaGUO LonBiaoZHANG GuangHengHU JiangGAO ZhenYuQIAN QianZENG DaLi
A mutant of panicle differentiation in rice called non-panicle (nop) was discovered in the progeny of a cross between 93-11 and Nipponbare. The mutant exhibits normal plant morphology but has apparently few tillers. The most striking change in nop is that its panicle differentiation is blocked, with masses of fluffy bract nodes generate from the positions where rachis branches normally develop in wild-type plants. Genetic analysis suggests that nop is controlled by a single recessive gene, which is temporarily named Nop(t). Based on its mutant phenotype, Nop(t) represents a key gene controlling the initiation of inflorescence differentiation. By using simple sequence repeat markers and sequence tagged site markers, Nop(t) gene was fine mapped in a 102-kb interval on the long arm of chromosome 6. These results will facilitate the positional cloning and functional studies of the gene.
