Infertility treatment: a nuclear restorer gene in maize
Levings, C.S.
Science 272(5266): 1279-1280
1996
ISSN/ISBN: 0036-8075 PMID: 8650539 Document Number: 456920
In this issue, Cui et al. report the identity of a gene that can inhibit cytoplamic male sterility (CMS) in maize. The important Texas male-sterile cytoplasm (cmsT) hybrid maize system is sensitive to T toxins generated by 2 maize pathogens. The mitochondrial genome of cmsT carries an unusual gene, T-urf13, that is responsible for causing both CMS and toxin sensitivity. Cui et al. characterized the nucleotide sequence of the nuclear gene rf2, which in combination with another restorer gene, rf1, can inhibit the sterility effects of T-urf13. The rf2 gene encodes the protein RF2, which has a similar sequence to that of mammalian mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDH). Two models are put forward by Cui et al. to explain how the Rf2-encoded ALDH restores pollen fertility.