The BnGRF2 gene (GRF2-like gene from Brassica napus) enhances seed oil production through regulating cell number and plant photosynthesis.
he Blastn result showed that rapeseed contained BnGRF2a/2b which were located in the A genome (A1 and A3) and C genome (C1 and C6), respectively, and the dominantly expressed gene BnGRF2a was chosen for transgenic research.
BnGRF2a also induced a >20% enlargement in extended leaves and >40% improvement in photosynthetic efficiency because of an increase in the chlorophyll content.
Because of less efficient self-fertilization induced by the longer pistil in the 35S-BnGRF2a transgenic line, Napin-BnGRF2a transgenic lines were further used to identify the function of BnGRF2, and the results showed that seed oil production also could increase >40% compared with the wild-type control.
The results suggest that improvement to economically important characteristics in oil crops may be achieved by manipulation of the GRF2 expression level.
