Differential expression of genes encoding protein kinase CK2 subunits in the plant cell cycle

Protein kinase CK2 is a ubiquitous Ser/Thr/Tyr kinase essential for cell viability in eukaryotes. It comprises α catalytic and β regulatory subunits, which combine to form the classical tetrameric structure, α2β2. Although CK2 is a component of the network that controls the eukaryotic cell cycle, very little is known about the expression patterns of genes encoding its constituent subunits, especially in plants. A study of the complexity of CK2α- and CK2β-encoding genes in BY-2 cells was undertaken in this work, and cloning of the different members of the gene families was performed. The expression of the individual members of each family in relation to cell proliferation was measured by real time RT-PCR. The data obtained provide an accurate understanding of the transcriptional regulation of CK2 in relation to the cell cycle and cell proliferation. © The Author [2005]. Published by Oxford University Press [on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology]. All rights reserved.