Accumulation of zeatin O-glycosyltransferase in Phaseolus vulgaris and Zea mays following cold stress

Zeatin O-glycosides have been reported as inactive and stable storage forms of cytokinins whose concentrations increase in cold stressed plants. Zeatin O-glycosides accumulation in developing bean seeds has been correlated with an increase of zeatin O-glycosyltransferase , which is specific to trans-zeatin, and catalyzes the conjugation of zeatin O-glycosides. When Phaseolus vulgaris and Zea mays seedlings were grown for 3 days at 25 and then incubated at 4 or 10 for 6 days no further growth was observed in roots. Hypertrophy was observed in the root tips of both species. In shoot-hypocotyl complexes, in contrast, growth occurred when seedlings were incubated at 10 . Western analysis, with Mabs specific to zeatin O-glycosyltransferase, detected antigenically related proteins in roots, shoot tips and cotyledons after seedlings were cold stressed for 1-6 days at 4 or 10 . Immunolocalization, of both maize and bean root sections grown at 25 revealed antigenically related proteins that were detected at low levels in cortical cells. The signal intensified upon cold stress. The localization of zeatin O-glycosyltransferase in Z. mays root tips was directly comparable to the distribution of the zeatin O-glycosides. The enzyme was detected in the nucleus, cytoplasm, and closely associated with the plasma membrane and in the cell wall of Z. mays root cells. Southern analysis suggested that more than one gene in Z. mays that were homologous to zeatin O-glycosyltransferase in P. vulgaris. Zeatin O-glycosyltransferase may be involved in modulation of cytokinins under cold stress.