Calmodulin, a Ca2+-binding protein, has no enzyme activity. It combines with Ca2+ and makes variable proteins to an active form. Calmodulin 2 is a ubiquitous protein in plants. To investigate the defense mechanism against various stresses, a clone encoding a calmodulin 2 protein was isolated from a cDNA library prepared from taproot mRNAs of Codonopsis lanceolata. The cDNA, designated CICAM2, is 719 nucleotides long and has an open reading frame of 450 bp with a deduced amino acid sequence of 149 residues. The deduced amino acid sequence of CICAM2 showed a high similarity with calmodulins of P. x hybrida (P27163) 97%, N. tabacum (BAB61908) 97%, S. tuberosum (AAA74405) 96%, Z. mays (CAA74307) 92%, C. richardii (AF510075) 93%, M. truncatula (AAM81203) 91%, and G. max (P62163) 91%. The transcriptional expression of the CICAM2 gene, was gradually increased by the CaCl2 treatment. Whereas its expression And it was gradually decreased in the cold stress treatment.ent.

To investigate the defense mechanism against the abiotic stress, a cDNA clone encoding a CuZn superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) protein was isolated from a cDNA library prepared from tabroot mRNAs of Codonopsis lanceolata. The eDNA, designated ClSODCc, is 799 nucleotides long and has an open reading frame of 459 bp with a deduced amino acid sequence of 152 residues. The deduced amino acid sequence of ClSODCc matched to the previously reported CuZnSODs. Consensus amino acid residues (His-45, -47, -62, -70, -79, -119 and Asp-82) were involved in Cu-, Cu/Zn-, and Zn- binding ligands. The deduced amino acid sequence of ClSODCc showed high homologies (82％-86％) regardless of species. Expression of ClSODCc by oxidative stress was increased up to 1 h after treatment and declined gradually. Much earlier and stronger expression of ClSODCc was observed in the cold stress treatment.

더덕 뿌리에서 유래한 EST cDNA library로부터 cyclophilin 유전자와 높은 상동성을 나타내 는 full clone cDNA를 얻었다. 더덕의 cyclophilin, ClCyP1은 747 bp의 cDNA로 174개의 아미노산을 코딩하는 525 bp의 ORF를 가지고 있다. ClCyP1의 아미노산 서열을 분석한 결과, 기존에 보고된 식물들의 cytosolic cyclophilin들과 높은 상동성을 나타내었으며, 여러 식물의 cytosolic CyP의 공통적인 특징인 7개의 아미노산 잔기(KSGKPLH)를 가지고 있었다. RT-PCR분석 결과, 더덕의 ClCyP1은 식물의 조직 전체에서 발현되며, 저온, 고온, 그리고 염 스트레스에 대해 그 발현량이 증가하였다.