CP4-EPSPS protein expression levels in samples
The expression levels of the CP4-EPSPS gene in plant leaf samples were
assessed during different growth stages of soybean. The results showed
that all wild soybean samples and SS plants were negative for EPSPS
expression. In contrast, EPSPS was detectable at different stages in
F1, F2 RR, F2 RS,
F3 RR, F3 RS, and GM plants, and the
protein levels in both hybrids and GM soybean were influenced by growth
stages. The expression of EPSPS declined significantly as plants matured
(Fig. 3). The levels of EPSPS in GM plants ranged between 364.28 and
747.79 μg g-1; in F2 plants, they
ranged between 124.15 and 247.89 μg g-1, and the
protein levels were highest in the R2 stage (230.07 μg
g-1) and lowest in the R7 stage (74.29 μg
g-1) in F3. In addition, similar
levels of relative EPSPS expression were observed for F2and F3 RR and RS plants, and there were no significant
differences between RR and RS in different plant generations.