M. Grelon et al., OGURA CYTOPLASMIC MALE-STERILITY (CMS)-ASSOCIATED ORF138 IS TRANSLATED INTO A MITOCHONDRIAL-MEMBRANE POLYPEPTIDE IN MALE-STERILE BRASSICA CYBRIDS, MGG. Molecular & general genetics, 243(5), 1994, pp. 540-547
Transcription of a putative mitochondrial gene (orf138) has previously
been correlated with Ogura cytoplasmic male-sterility (CMS) in rapese
ed cybrids. In this paper, studies performed on a Brassica cybrid with
a different organization of the orf138 locus confirm this association
. We also show that mitochondria isolated from male-sterile rapeseed p
lants synthesize a polypeptide of 19 kDa, which is absent in fertile r
evertants. Antibodies against a glutathione S-transferase-ORF138 fusio
n protein were raised to establish that this 19 kDa polypeptide is the
product of orf138. The anti-ORFl38 serum was used to demonstrate that
the orf138 translation product occurs only in sterile cybrids and co-
purifies with the mitochondrial membrane fraction.