Expression Pattern of pmt, erf1 and jap1 Genes in Nicotiana benthamiana and Atropa belladonna Plants under UV Radiation, Wounding and Methyl Jasmonate Treatments

The Solanaceae plants produce a variety of interesting biologically active products including the steroid alkaloids solanidine, nicotine and tropane alkaloids. Putrescine N-methyltransferase (PMT) is an enzyme that catalyses s-adenosylmethionine-dependent methylation of putrescine in one of the primary steps of nicotine and tropane alkaloids biosynthesis pathway. Two tobacco members of the AP2/ERF-domain transcription factors family called NtORC1 and NtJAP1 were shown to up regulate the activity of the NtPMT promoter in Nicotiana tabacum L. under environmental stresses. In this study, semiquantitave RT-PCR analysis showed that expression patterns of PMT, ERF1 and JAP1 genes in shoots and roots of Nicotiana benthamiana Domin and Atropa belladonna L. were examined under methyl jasmonate, UV radiation and wounding treatments. Plants were harvested half an hour after each treatment. The expression pattern of examined genes showed differences between plant tissues under different treatments.