Publisher Summary This chapter highlights tobacco BY-2 (TBY-2) cell line. TBY-2 derived from the seedlings of N. tabacum L. cv. Bright Yellow 2 grows fast and multiplies 80- to 100-fold in 1 week. After the stationary phase, cells of TBY-2 are transferred to a medium containing aphidicolin for 24 hr and then released from treatment; high synchrony is obtained starting from the S phase. TBY-2 cells are propagated in the modified medium of Linsmaier and Skoog, in which KH2PO4 and thiamine HCl are increased to 370 and 1 mg/liter, respectively, and sucrose and 2,4-D are supplemented to 3% and 0.2 mg/liter, respectively. The preparation of protoplasts from TBY-2 cells, from which the isolation of organelles is easy, has been established. Using the synchrony system, the change in the cell cycle progression of TBY-2 cells successfully followed the change in cytoskeletons. Biochemical and molecular biological studies can also be done on TBY-2 cells, as mass culture of this material is readily feasible.

Tobacco BY-2 Cell Line as the “HeLa” Cell in the Cell Biology of Higher Plants

Plant growth responds rapidly to developmental and environmental signals, but the underlying changes in cell division activity are poorly understood. A labile cyclin-GUS reporter was developed to facilitate the spatio-temporal analysis of cell division patterns. The chimeric reporter protein is turned over every cell cycle and hence its histochemical activity accurately reports individual mitotic cells. Using Arabidopsis plants transformed with cyclin-GUS, we visualized patterns of mitotic activity in wounded leaves which suggest a role for cell division in structural reinforcement.

Spatio‐temporal analysis of mitotic activity with a labile cyclin–GUS fusion protein

Plant protoplasts show physiological perceptions and responses to hormones, metabolites, environmental cues, and pathogen-derived elicitors, similar to cell-autonomous responses in intact tissues and plants. The development of defined protoplast transient expression systems for high-throughput screening and systematic characterization of gene functions has greatly contributed to elucidating plant signal transduction pathways, in combination with genetic, genomic, and transgenic approaches.

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Signal Transduction in Maize and Arabidopsis Mesophyll Protoplasts

The C-terminus of mouse talin (amino acids 2345-2541) is responsible for all of the protein's f-actin binding capacity Unlike full-length talin, the C-terminal f-actin binding domain is unable to nucleate actin polymerization We have found that transient and stable expression of the talin actin-binding domain fused to the C-terminus of the green fluorescent protein (GFP-mTn) can visualize the actin cytoskeleton in different types of living plant cells without affecting cell morphology or function Transiently expressed GFP-mTn co-localized with rhodamine-phalloidin in permeabilized tobacco BY-2 suspension cells, showing that the fusion protein can specifically label the plant actin cytoskeleton Constitutive expression of GFP-mTn in transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants visualized actin filaments in all examined tissues with no apparent effects on plant morphology or development at any stage during the life cycle This demonstrates that in a number of different cell types GFP-mTn can serve as a non-invasive marker for the actin cytoskeleton Confocal imaging of GFP-mTn labeled actin filaments was employed to reveal novel information on the in vivo organization of the actin cytoskeleton in transiently transformed, normally elongating tobacco pollen tubes

A GFP-mouse talin fusion protein labels plant actin filaments in vivo and visualizes the actin cytoskeleton in growing pollen tubes.

Activation of cell division in the root apical meristem after germination is essential for postembryonic root development. Arabidopsis plants homozygous for a mutation in the ROOT MERISTEMLESS1 (RML1) gene are unable to establish an active postembryonic meristem in the root apex. This mutation abolishes cell division in the root but not in the shoot. We report the molecular cloning of the RML1 gene, which encodes the first enzyme of glutathione (GSH) biosynthesis, γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase, and which is allelic to CADMIUM SENSITIVE2. The phenotype of the rml1 mutant, which was also evident in the roots of wild-type Arabidopsis and tobacco treated with an inhibitor of GSH biosynthesis, could be relieved by applying GSH to rml1 seedlings. By using a synchronized tobacco cell suspension culture, we showed that the G1-to-S phase transition requires an adequate level of GSH. These observations suggest the existence of a GSH-dependent developmental pathway essential for initiation and maintenance of cell division during postembryonic root development.

The ROOT MERISTEMLESS1/CADMIUM SENSITIVE2 Gene Defines a Glutathione-Dependent Pathway Involved in Initiation and Maintenance of Cell Division during Postembryonic Root Development

A fluorescent derivative of D-glucose, 2-NBDG, which was previously developed for the evaluation of glucose uptake activity by living cells, was used on Escherichia coli cells and its fate after incorporation in the cells was investigated. 2-NBDG was converted to another fluorescent derivative (2-NBDG metabolite) immediately after it was taken by E. coli cells. This 2-NBDG metabolite was then decomposed to non-fluorescent forms. 2-NBDG metabolite was decomposed into the original 2-NBDG by G6Pase with concurrent liberation of inorganic phosphate. Furthermore, FAB/MS analysis showed that its molecular weight was 420, the same value as that of 2-NBDG 6-phosphate. These indicate 2-NBDG metabolite should be 2-NBDG 6-phosphate. Based on these results, the feasibility of 2-NBDG as a fluorescent non-toxic probe for glucose uptake activity and its application to viability assessment of various living systems are discussed.

Intracellular Fate of 2-NBDG, a Fluorescent Probe for Glucose Uptake Activity, in Escherichia coli Cells

Studies on Plastid-Nuclei (Nucleoids) in Nicotiana tabacum L. I. Isolation of Proplastid-Nuclei from Cultured Cells and Identification of Proplastid-Nuclear Proteins

A new fluorescent derivative of d-glucose, 2-[N-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino]-2-deoxy-d-glucose (2-NBDG), which had been previously developed for the analysis of glucose uptake activity by living cells, was investigated to evaluate its applicability for assaying the viability of yeast Candida albicans. Lineweaver-Burk plots showed the uptake of 2-NBDG to be competitively inhibited by d-glucose and not by l-glucose, which suggested the involvement of the glucose transporting system of C. albicans in the uptake of 2-NBDG. A good correlation was obtained between the yeast viability, determined by the plate-count method, and the 2-NBDG uptake activity of yeast cells (correlation constant: r=0.97). This is expected to lead to the development of a new fluorescent probe for the determination of yeast cell viability.

Evaluation of 2-[ N -(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino]-2-deoxy- d -glucose, a new fluorescent derivative of glucose, for viability assessment of yeast Candida albicans

The molecular size of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) molecules and the number of copies of mtDNA per mitochondrion were evaluated from cultured cells of the tobacco BY-2 line derived fromNicotiana tabacum L. cv. Bright Yellow-2. To determine the DNA content per mitochondrion, protoplasts of cultured cells were stained with 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI), and the intensity of the fluorescence emitted from the mitochondrial nuclei (mt-nuclei) was measured with a video-intensified photon counting microscope system (VIM system). Each mitochondrion except for those undergoing a division contained one mt-nucleus. The most frequently measured size of the DNA in the mitochondria was between 120 and 200 kilobase pairs (kbp) throughout the course of culture of the tobacco cells. Mitochondria containing more than 200 kbp of DNA increased significantly in number 24 h after transfer of the cells into fresh medium but their number fell as the culture continued. Because division of mitochondria began soon after transfer of the cells into fresh medium and continued for 3 days, the change of the DNA content per mitochondrion during the culture must correspond to DNA synthesis of mitochondria in the course of mitochondrial division. By contrast, the analyses of products of digestion by restriction endonucleases indicated that the genome size of the mtDNA was at least 270 kbp. Electron microscopy revealed that mtDNAs were circular molecules and their length ranged from 1 to 35 μm, and 60% of them ranged from 7 to 11 μrn. These results indicate that the mitochondrial genome in tobacco cells consists of multiple species of mtDNA molecules, and mitochondria do not contain all the mtDNA species. Therefore, mitochondria are heterogeneous in mtDNA composition.

Yasuyuki Nemoto

Papers

Tobacco BY-2 Cell Line as the “HeLa” Cell in the Cell Biology of Higher Plants

Intracellular Fate of 2-NBDG, a Fluorescent Probe for Glucose Uptake Activity, in Escherichia coli Cells

Studies on Plastid-Nuclei (Nucleoids) in Nicotiana tabacum L. I. Isolation of Proplastid-Nuclei from Cultured Cells and Identification of Proplastid-Nuclear Proteins

Evaluation of 2-[ N -(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino]-2-deoxy- d -glucose, a new fluorescent derivative of glucose, for viability assessment of yeast Candida albicans

Organization of heterogeneous mitochondrial DNA molecules in mitochondrial nuclei of cultured tobacco cells