Silencing of eEF1B subunits in N. benthamiana.

(A) Phenotype of eEF1Bα-, β- or γ-silenced N. benthamiana. TRV::PDS was used as a positive control for the VIGS experiment. The phenotype was compared with non-silenced plants (empty vector, TRV::00). Time points correspond to 13 and 20 days after TRV agro-infiltration. (B) Relative expression of each subunit in gene specific-silenced plants. The expression levels of each gene were determined 13 days after TRV agro-infiltration by quantitative RT-PCR and are given relative to the expression of TRV::00, which was set to 1. Relative levels were calculated using actin as a standard control. Bars represent standard errors for six biological replicates. Asterisks represent significant differences between TRV::00 and eEF1B-silenced plants (unpaired t-test: **P <0.01; ***P <0.001).