Genome-wide identification of PEBP gene family in pineapple reveal its potential functions in flowering

Xiaohan Zhang; Yanwei Ouyang; Lei Zhao; Ziqiong Li; Hongna Zhang; Yongzan Wei

doi:10.3389/fpls.2023.1277436

Genome-wide identification of PEBP gene family in pineapple reveal its potential functions in flowering

Front Plant Sci. 2023 Oct 26:14:1277436. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1277436. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Xiaohan Zhang¹, Yanwei Ouyang¹, Lei Zhao^{1

2}, Ziqiong Li¹, Hongna Zhang¹, Yongzan Wei²

Affiliations

¹ School of Breeding and Multiplication (Sanya Institute of Breeding and Multiplication), Hainan University, Sanya, China.
² Key Laboratory of Biology and Genetic Resources of Tropical Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Tropical Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Hainan Institute for Tropical Agricultural Resources, Haikou, China.

Abstract

Phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein (PEBP) plays an important role in regulating flowering time and morphogenesis of plants. However, the identification and functional analysis of PEBP gene in pineapple (AcPEBP) have not been systematically studied. The pineapple genome contained 11 PEBP family members, which were subsequently classified into three subfamilies (FT-like, TFL-like and MFT-like) based on phylogenetic relationships. The arrangement of these 11 shows an unequal pattern across the six chromosomes of pineapple the pineapple genome. The anticipated outcomes of the promoter cis-acting elements indicate that the PEBP gene is subject to regulation by diverse light signals and endogenous hormones such as ethylene. The findings from transcriptome examination and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) indicate that FT-like members AcFT3 and AcFT4 display a heightened expression level, specifically within the floral structures. The expression of AcFT3 and AcFT4 increases sharply and remains at a high level after 4 days of ethylene induction, while the expression of AcFT7 and AcMFT1 decreases gradually during the flowering process. Additionally, AcFT3, AcFT4 and AcFT7 show specific expression in different floral organs of pineapple. These outcomes imply that members belonging to the FT-like subfamily may have a significant impact on the process of bud differentiation and flower development. Through transcriptional activation analysis, it was determined that AcFT4 possesses transcriptional activation capability and is situated in the nucleus and peripheral cytoplasm. Overexpression of AcFT4 in Arabidopsis resulted in the promotion of early flowering by 6-7 days. The protein interaction prediction network identified potential flower regulators, including CO, AP1, LFY and SOC1, that may interact with PEBP proteins. This study explores flower development in pineapple, thereby serving as a valuable reference for future research endeavors in this domain.

Keywords: PEBP; expression profiles; flowering; genome-wide; pineapple (Ananas comosus (L.) Merr.).

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. The project was funded by the National Natural Science Fund of China (32160687 and 32360723), the major science and technology project of Hainan Province (ZDKJ2021014), the Natural Science Foundation of Hainan Province (321RC467), and the Scientific Research Start-up Fund Project of Hainan University (KYQD-ZR-20090).