Determination of Ploidy Level and Isolation of Genes Encoding Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase in Japanese Foxtail (Alopecurus japonicus)

Ploidy level is important in biodiversity studies and in developing strategies for isolating important plant genes. Many herbicide-resistant weed species are polyploids, but our understanding of these polyploid weeds is limited. Japanese foxtail, a noxious agricultural grass weed, has evolved herbicide resistance. However, most studies on this weed have ignored the fact that there are multiple copies of target genes. This may complicate the study of resistance mechanisms. Japanese foxtail was found to be a tetraploid by flow cytometer and chromosome counting, two commonly used methods in the determination of ploidy levels. We found that there are two copies of the gene encoding plastidic acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACCase) in Japanese foxtail and all the homologous genes are expressed. Additionally, no difference in ploidy levels or ACCase gene copy numbers was observed between an ACCase-inhibiting herbicide-resistant and a herbicide-sensitive population in this study.