Transgenic rice plants expressing the α-L-arabinofuranosidase of exhibit strong dwarfism and markedly enhanced tillering.

Lignocellulosic materials are potential renewable sources of fermentable sugars for bioethanol production. In this study, we used the gene encoding CcAbf62A, a putative extracellular α-L-arabinofuranosidase, cloned from the mycotrophic basidiomycete . CcAbf62A acts on arabinoxylan, the major hemicellulose of grasses, releasing arabinose. was introduced into rice with the aim of enhancing delignification efficiency and the availability of lignocellulosic materials without reducing lignin content. Among the 32 lines of regenerated transgenic rice, 13 exhibited markedly disrupted elongation growth and excessive tillering (dwarf), seven showed delayed elongation growth (retarded-growth), and 12 showed phenotypes similar to those of control plants (normal). Additionally, the dwarf lines showed reduced acclimation. RT-PCR analysis revealed that dwarf lines had higher levels of expression than retarded-growth and normal lines. Although the lignin content of transgenic rice plants expressing did not differ significantly from that of control rice plants, dwarf lines were characterized by delayed deposition of lignin in the culms compared with the controls. The reduced acclimation ability of dwarf lines is believed to be associated with increased water loss and reduced water conductivity concomitant with delayed lignin deposition. Contrary to expectations, the alkaline delignification rates of dwarf and retarded-growth Abf lines were slightly lower than those of control rice plants. Our findings indicate that CcAbf62A reduces ferulate-lignin cross-links by detaching arabinose side chains from arabinoxylan and increases the relative abundance of alkaline-resistant benzyl ether cross-links. CcAbf62A is anticipated to provide new approaches for breeding plants containing altered lignocellulosic materials or lodging-resistant crops.