Identification of Alpha-Galactosidase gene in tomato plant

Abstract

In recent years, Alpha-Galactosidase enzymes have been a growing interest in applying renewable resources for biorefineries; while tomatoes are widely consumed around the world and are the second most economically valuable vegetable. It contains the highest amount of vitamins and minerals of any fruit or vegetable. The project intends to isolate the α-Galactosidase genes from tomato plants, including leaves and seeds. The samples including both tomato leaves and seed were prepared and were extracted RNA respectively by Total RNA Extraction Kit-Mini-Plant. The total RNA elution was checked by the concentration by UV-Vis spectrophotometer. For cDNA synthesis, the isolated RNA was converted into complementary DNA via reverse transcription using TOYOBO Company reagents, and Actin PCR was used as a positive control. As the results, Alpha-Galactosidase is present in germinating of tomato seeds, where it is involved in the mobilization of carbohydrate reserves during and following tomato’s seed germination, while for tomato leaves there is no evidence that illustrates the appearance of α-Galactosidase in tomato leaves. This result is significant for further research aiming for gene overexpression analysis for multiplying the enzyme α-Galactosidase amount for the medical application.