Abstract
To inquire the machinery that operates to accumulate storage materials into oilseeds, the expression profiles of genes involving in production of oils and proteins in developing sesame seeds were analyzed. All the genes encoding enzymes for fatty-acid synthesis (α-CT, BC, BCCP, KAS1, ACP and FAD2) and oleosin were expressed at higher levels in 2-to-3 weeks after flowering. Expression pattern of a homologue of WRI1, a regulator that controls oil accumulation in Arabidopsis seeds, had strong resemblance to that of oleosin gene, implying the involvement of WRI1 in regulation of oleosin expression. Genes for seed storage protein (SSP) showed different expression patterns each other. Various transcription factors regulate SSP genes in Arabidopsis. We therefore compared expression profiles of SSP genes with those of genes homologous to the respective factors, finding that ABI3 and ABI5 might be involved in regulation for 7S and 11S globulins, and L1L and bZIP12 for 2S albumin.
