Abstract
One of the previously identified meiosis-associated genes from Lilium longiflorum, designated LlM532, has shown to contain a nuclear localization signal and sigma-70 like RNA binding motif, and has homology with yeast Rpf2, a pre-rRNA processing factor of ribosome biogenesis. Immunostaining and protein gel blot analysis indicated that the LlM532 gene product is a nuclear/nucleolar protein highly expressed during early stages of microsporogenesis. Nuclear targeting and subnuclear localization of the LlM532 protein was confirmed by expressing the GFP::LlM532 fusion protein in onion epidermal cells. We have also isolated an Arabidopsis homolog, designated AtM532. The similarity between LlM532 and AtM532 is high and the intracellular localization of GFP fusion protein indicated that the AtM532 protein is targeted to the nucleolus. The AtM532 gene exists as a single copy in the genome and the mRNA is expressed at high levels in reproductive organs and root.
