The plant circadian clock controls various physiological phenomena that are important for adaptation to natural day-night cycles. Many components of the circadian clock have been identified in Arabidopsis thaliana, the model plant for molecular genetic studies. Recent studies revealed evolutionary conservation of clock components in green plants. Homologues of clock-related genes have been isolated from Lemna gibba and Lemna aequinoctialis, and it has been demonstrated that these homologues function in the clock system in a manner similar to their functioning in Arabidopsis. While clock components are widely conserved, circadian phenomena display diversity even within the Lemna genus. In order to survey the full extent of diversity in circadian rhythms among duckweed plants, we characterised the circadian rhythms of duckweed by employing a semi-transient bioluminescent reporter system. Using a particle bombardment method, circadian bioluminescent reporters were introduced into nine strains representing five duckweed species: Spirodela polyrhiza, Landoltia punctata, Lemna gibba, L. aequinoctialis and Wolffia columbiana. We then monitored luciferase (luc+) reporter activities driven by AtCCA1, ZmUBQ1 or CaMV35S promoters under entrainment and free-running conditions. Under entrainment, AtCCA1::luc+ showed similar diurnal rhythms in all strains. This suggests that the mechanism of biological timing under day-night cycles is conserved throughout the evolution of duckweeds. Under free-running conditions, we observed circadian rhythms of AtCCA1::luc+, ZmUBQ1::luc+ and CaMV35S::luc+. These circadian rhythms showed diversity in period length and sustainability, suggesting that circadian clock mechanisms are somewhat diversified among duckweeds.

Gene expression is a fundamental cellular process and expression dynamics are of great interest in life science. We succeeded in monitoring cellular gene expression in a duckweed plant, Lemna gibba, using bioluminescent reporters. Using particle bombardment, epidermal and mesophyll cells were transfected with the luciferase gene (luc+) under the control of a constitutive [Cauliflower mosaic virus 35S (CaMV35S)] and a rhythmic [Arabidopsis thaliana CIRCADIAN CLOCK ASSOCIATED 1 (AtCCA1)] promoter. Bioluminescence images were captured using an EM-CCD (electron multiply charged couple device) camera. Luminescent spots of the transfected cells in the plant body were quantitatively measured at the single-cell level. Luminescence intensities varied over a 1,000-fold range among CaMV35S::luc+-transfected cells in the same plant body and showed a log-normal-like frequency distribution. We monitored cellular gene expression under light-dark conditions by capturing bioluminescence images every hour. Luminescence traces of ≥50 individual cells in a frond were successfully obtained in each monitoring procedure. Rhythmic and constitutive luminescence behaviors were observed in cells transfected with AtCCA1::luc+ and CaMV35S::luc+, respectively. Diurnal rhythms were observed in every AtCCA1::luc+-introduced cell with traceable luminescence, and slight differences were detected in their rhythmic waveforms. Thus the single-cell bioluminescence monitoring system was useful for the characterization of cellular gene expression in a plant body.