Molecular cloning and expression of hardening-induced genes in Chlorella vulgaris C-27: The most abundant clone encodes a late embryogenesis abundant protein

To investigate the effects of hardening on gene expression in Chlorella vulgaris Beijerink IAM C-27 (formerly Chlorella ellipsoidea Gerneck IAM C-27), a frost-hardy strain, 17 cDNA clones corresponding to hardening-induced Chlorella (hiC) genes were isolated by differential screening of a cDNA library from 6-h hardened cells. Northern blot analysis of transcripts of hiC genes showed that these genes are specifically induced by hardening and that their patterns of induction vary. Southern blots of genomic DNAs from two strains (Chlorella ellipsoidea Gerneck IAM C-102, chilling-sensitive; and C. vulgaris C-27, frost-hardy) of Chlorella indicated that ten hiC clones out of 17 hybridized only with DNA of strain C-27 and the other seven clones hybridized with DNA of both strains. However, of these seven clones, transcripts corresponding to six clones did not accumulate in strain C-102 at low temperatures. The sequence of a deduced protein encoded by the most abundant clone, hiC6, exhibited homology to sequences of Group III LEA (late embryogenesis abundant) proteins and had an amino-terminal amino acid sequence that was similar to the sequences of chloroplast transit peptides.