Cell cycle-regulated gene expression in transgenic plant cells.

A majority of histone genes are expressed in the S phase during the cell cycle. Using the gene expression system of transformed sunflower cells into which wheat histone H3 gene was introduced by the Ti-plasmid gene transfer technique, we determined three cis-acting control sequences (hexameric, octameric, and nonameric motifs) which seemed to confer the S-phase-specific transcription of wheat histone genes. Furthermore, as candidates for regulatory transcription factors, three nuclear DNA-binding proteins HBP-1a, HBP-1b, and HBP-2 that interact with the hexameric and nonameric motifs were identified. The structural analysis of the cDNA of HBP-1a revealed that a nuclear protein has the leucine-zipper structure and a DNA-binding motif. The hexameric motif in the H3 gene was also seen in cauliflower mosaic virus 35S (CaMV 35S) promoter and shown to function as a regulatory element of this promoter. The wheat HBP-1b can interact with the hexameric motif of the CaMV 35S promoter. Much attention has been paid to the significance of the hexameric sequences within the H3 and CaMV 35S promoters and the DNA-binding proteins HBP-1a and HBP-1b.