J Integr Plant Biol.

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Plant G proteins: Versatile signaling hubs for synergistic improvement of agronomic traits

Haoran Li1†, Zhilong Zhang1†, Fangyuan Liu1†, Haonan Wang1, Zebiao He1, Sanyuan Tang2*, Xiaojing Dong3* and Peng Xie1*   

  1. 1. Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Stress Biology, School of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat‐sen University, Sun Yat‐sen University, Shenzhen 518107, China
    2. Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
    3. Yazhouwan National Laboratory, Sanya 572024, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.
    *Correspondences: Peng Xie (xiep28@mail.sysu.edu.cn, Dr. Xie is fully responsible for the distribution of all materials associated with this article); Xiaojing Dong (dongxiaojing@yzwlab.cn); Sanyuan Tang (sytang@genetics.ac.cn)
  • Received:2026-04-28 Accepted:2026-07-02 Online:2026-07-20
  • Supported by:
    This research was funded by the National Key R&D Program of China (2022YFD1500500), the National Science Foundation for Young Scientists of China (32472124 and 32300246), the General Program of Shenzhen Natural Science Foundation (JCYJ20240813151204006), the 9th National Special Support Program for High‐Level Talents (QNBJ Project) and the matching financial fund of Guangdong province, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2025M784068), the 2026 Annual Young Scientists Cultivation Program of Sun Yat‐sen University, the Fundamental Research Fund for the Central Universities (77000‐12240011), and the Moutai Group Research and Development Project (2023011).

Abstract: Prioritizing defense responses often restricts growth and yield, forming a growth–defense conflict that limits crop productivity and threatens global food security. Traditionally attributed to resource allocation constraints, this trade‐off is governed by sophisticated signaling regulatory networks. Plant G proteins act as pivotal molecular switches that initiate cellular signal transduction, and they extensively integrate plant growth, development, and stress adaptation. Recent studies have uncovered their multifaceted coordination roles in regulating crop yield and stress resistance, and elite alleles of G proteins have been identified and applied in molecular design breeding. However, the pleiotropy of most G proteins hinders the concerted control of yield and stress resilience, leading to trait divergence, which represents a key bottleneck for breeding high‐yield and stress‐tolerant crops. Here, we summarize the regulatory networks of G protein subunits in yield and quality traits and stress responses, dissect the mechanisms underlying G protein‐mediated growth‐resistance decoupling, and propose precision strategies to simultaneously enhance these agronomic traits. This review provides theoretical and practical guidance for developing high‐performance crop varieties.

Key words: G proteins, regulatory network, stress response, trade‐offs, yield

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