Isolation and Characterization of "GmScream" Promoters That Regulate Highly Expressing Soybean (Glycine Max Merr.) Genes

To increase our understanding of the regulatory components that control gene expression, it is important to identify, isolate and characterize new promoters. In this study, a group of highly expressed soybean (Glycine max Merr.) genes, which we have named "GmScream", were first identified from RNA-Seq data. The promoter regions were then identified, cloned and fused with the coding region of the green fluorescent protein (gfp) gene, for introduction and analysis in different tissues using 3 tools for validation. Approximately half of the GmScream promoters identified showed levels of GFP expression comparable to or higher than the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus 35S (35S) promoter. Using transient expression in lima bean cotyledonary tissues, the strongest GmScream promoters gave over 6-fold higher expression than the 35S promoter while several other GmScream promoters showed 2- to 3-fold higher expression. The two highest expressing promoters, GmScreamM4 and GmScreamM8, regulated two different elongation factor 1A genes in soybean. In stably transformed soybean tissues, GFP driven by the GmScreamM4 or GmScreamM8 promoter exhibited constitutive high expression in most tissues with preferentially higher expression in proliferative embryogenic tissues, procambium, vascular tissues, root tips and young embryos. Using deletion analysis of the promoter, two proximal regions of the GmScreamM8 promoter were identified as contributing significantly to high levels of gene expression.