Transcriptional repressor AGL79 positively regulates flowering time in Arabidopsis

Haibo Yang; Pengcheng Zhang; Diandian Guo; Na Wang; Hao Lin; Xingchun Wang; Lifang Niu

doi:10.1016/j.jplph.2023.153985

Transcriptional repressor AGL79 positively regulates flowering time in Arabidopsis

J Plant Physiol. 2023 Jun:285:153985. doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2023.153985. Epub 2023 Apr 23.

Authors

Haibo Yang¹, Pengcheng Zhang², Diandian Guo², Na Wang², Hao Lin², Xingchun Wang³, Lifang Niu⁴

Affiliations

¹ College of Life Sciences, Shanxi Agriculture University, Taigu, 030801, China; Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China.
² Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China.
³ College of Life Sciences, Shanxi Agriculture University, Taigu, 030801, China. Electronic address: wxingchun@sxau.edu.cn.
⁴ Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China. Electronic address: niulifang@caas.cn.

PMID: 37148653
DOI: 10.1016/j.jplph.2023.153985

Abstract

The MADS-box gene family is widely distributed in higher plants and the members of the angiosperm-specific APETALA1/FRUITFULL (AP1/FUL) subfamily plays important roles in the regulation of plant reproductive development. Recent studies revealed that the AP1/FUL subfamily member Dt2, VEGETATIVE1/PsFRUITFULc (VEG1/PsFULc) and MtFRUITFULc (MtFULc) are essential for the stem growth, branching and inflorescence development in legume species soybean (Glycine max), pea (Pisum sativum) and Medicago truncatula. However, the biological function of their homologue in Arabidopsis thaliana, AGAMOUS-LIKE 79 (AGL79), has not been well elucidated. In this study, we investigated the developmental roles of Arabidopsis AGL79 by CRISPR/Cas9-mutagenesis and molecular and physiological analyses. We found that AGL79 mainly acts as a transcriptional repressor and positively regulates Arabidopsis flowering time. We further revealed that AGL79 interacts with SUPPRESSOR OF OVEREXPRESSION OF CO1 (SOC1) and represses the expression of TERMINAL FLOWER 1 (TFL1). Our results demonstrated the AGL79-mediated flowering regulation in Arabidopsis and added an additional layer of complexity to the understanding of flowering time regulation in dicot plants.

Keywords: AGL79; Arabidopsis; Flowering time; TFL1; Transcriptional repressor.

MeSH terms

Arabidopsis Proteins* / genetics
Arabidopsis Proteins* / metabolism
Arabidopsis* / metabolism
Flowers
Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
Glycine max / genetics
MADS Domain Proteins / genetics
MADS Domain Proteins / metabolism
Plants, Genetically Modified / genetics
Transcription Factors / genetics
Transcription Factors / metabolism

Substances

Arabidopsis Proteins
MADS Domain Proteins
Transcription Factors
At3g30260 protein, Arabidopsis