Browsing by Author "Rose, B. A. (Beverley Ann)"
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- ItemThe characterisation and partial sequencing of the grapevine chloroplast genome(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004-03) Rose, B. A. (Beverley Ann); Burger, Johan T.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of AgriSciences. Dept. of Genetics.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A number of proteins essential for the survival of a plant are encoded by the chloroplast genome. The characterization and sequencing of a number of algal and plant chloroplast genomes has facilitated researchers understanding of cellular functions and metabolism. Chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) has also been used to determine inter- and intraspecies evolutionary relationships and this organelle offers an alternative means of expressing foreign genes. Although a number of species' chloroplast genomes have been characterized and sequenced, no previous attempts of this kind have been made for a chloroplast genome of the family Vitaceae. In this study, attempts were made to characterize and partially sequence the chloroplast genome of Vilis vinifera. Chloroplast DNA was isolated from the Sultana and Sugra 1 cultivars and digested with restriction enzymes that produced cpDNA fragments of a suitable size for cloning. The fragments were shotgun-cloned into a plasmid vector and white colonies were screened by means of PCR and colony blotting. Three EcoRI-digested clones and one PstI-digested clone were obtained in this manner. Walking outwards from a previously sequenced grapevine rrn 16 gene region by means of PCR also allowed us to sequence a further -3310 bp region of the Sultana chloroplast genome. BAC clones containing V. vinifera cv L. Cabernet Sauvignon cpDNA inserts became available later in the project. It was decided to use these clones for further library construction instead of isolated cpDNA. The 5' and 3' end sequences of seven of the 24 BAC clones were obtained. These were compared to sequences found in the NCBI database to find - homologous chloroplast regions and determine the size of each BAC insert. One clone appeared to contain the entire grapevine chloroplast genome, apart from a 500 bp region. This clone was selected for further analysis. The BAC clone DNA was isolated and restriction-digested fragments were shotgun-cloned into a plasmid vector. White colonies were screened by isolating the plasmid DNA and digesting it with appropriate restriction enzy~es. The 5' and 3' ends of putative positive clones were sequenced and mapped onto the Atropa belladonna chloroplast genome. A total of 15 clones were obtained in this project. Five of these contain cpDNA isolated from grapevine leaves and 10 contain fragments sub-cloned from the BAC clone. The biggest problem encountered with both methods used for library construction was genomic DNA contamination. Genomic DNA either originated from the plant nuclear genome or from the bacterial host cells in which the BAC clones were maintained. Many of the clones screened contained genomic DNA, and these could only be identified and removed once the clones had been sequenced. Even when a commercial kit was used for BAC clone isolation, 31% of the clones screened contained genomic DNA. This kit was specifically designed for the isolation of genomic DNA-free large constructs. The clones obtained from the two strategies provided a good representation of the grapevine chloroplast genome. The only region not represented was the Small Single Copy (SSC) region. Approximately 40% of the grapevine chloroplast genome was covered by these clones. This provides a basis for further genome characterization, physical mapping and sequencing of the grapevine chloroplast genome.