A MADS-box gene controlling heading time in common wheat

摘要

To assess the function of wheat APETALA1 (API) ho mo log WAP1 in determining heading time, we performed a transgenic analysis. The WAP I cDNA clone was connected to the rice actin 1 gene (Actl) promoter in the sense orientation, and the construct wasdelivered into wheat embryo tissues by particle bombardment. The transgenic plants obtained were examined for their heading characters by using growth chamber. Inhibition of WAP1 expression in transgenic plants by co-suppression affected neither vernalization requirement nor photoperiodic sensitivity, but resulted in decreased narrow-sense earliness. This observation indicates that WAP1 is involved in accelerating autonomous phase transition from vegetative to reproductive growth in common wheat.