A glutathione S-transferase cDNA identified by mRNA differential display is upregulated during somatic embryogenesis in Cichorium.

Abstract CHI-GST1 , a cDNA encoding a glutathione S -transferase, was isolated by differential display in leaf tissues of chicory, during the early stages of somatic embryogenesis. Expression analysis of the gene by Northern blot indicated that the transcript accumulation is specific of the leaf developing somatic embryogenesis and is not observed in leaf tissue of the non-embryogenic cultivar.