Activation Tagging of the Floral Inducer FT

FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT), which acts in parallel with the meristem-identity gene LEAFY (LFY) to induce flowering of Arabidopsis, was isolated by activation tagging. Like LFY, FT acts partially downstream of CONSTANS (CO), which promotes flowering in response to long days. Unlike many other floral regulators, the deduced sequence of the FT protein does not suggest that it directly controls transcription or transcript processing. Instead, it is similar to the sequence of TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1), an inhibitor of flowering that also shares sequence similarity with membrane-associated mammalian proteins.