The MADS‐box transcription factor GmFULc promotes GmZTL4 gene transcription to modulate maturity in soybean

doi:10.1111/jipb.13682

J Integr Plant Biol. ›› 2024, Vol. 66 ›› Issue (8): 1603-1619.DOI: 10.1111/jipb.13682

• Cell and Developmental Biology • Previous Articles Next Articles

The MADS‐box transcription factor GmFULc promotes GmZTL4 gene transcription to modulate maturity in soybean

Jingzhe Sun^1,2†, Yucheng Liu^3†, Yuhong Zheng^4†, Yongguo Xue^5†, Yuhuan Fan¹, Xiaofei Ma¹, Yujia Ji¹, Gaoyuan Liu¹, Xiaoming Zhang¹, Yang Li⁶, Shuming Wang^4*, Zhixi Tian^3* and Lin Zhao^1*

1. Key Laboratory of Soybean Biology of Ministry of Education China, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China;
2. Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266101, China;
3. State Key Laboratory of Plant Cell and Chromosome Engineering, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Innovation Academy for Seed Design, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China;
4. Jilin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China Agricultural Science and Technology Northeast Innovation Center, Changchun 130033, China;
5. Institute of Soybean Research, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China;
6. Depatment of Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio 45701, USA
^†These authors contributed equally to this work.
^*Correspondences: Shuming Wang (shuminw@263.net); Zhixi Tian (zxtian@genetics.ac.cn); Lin Zhao (zhaolinneau@126.com, Dr. Zhao is fully responsible for the distributions of all materials associated with this article)

Received:2024-02-03 Revised:2024-05-04 Online:2024-06-13 Published:2024-08-01
Supported by:
This study was financially supported by National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFF1001203), National Natural Science Foundation of China (32072086), Heilongjiang Province Natural Science Foundation (ZD2020C002). We thank Dr. Yuefeng Guan (Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University) for sharing plasmid materials.

Abstract

Abstract: Flowering time and maturity are crucial agronomic traits that affect the regional adaptability of soybean plants. The development of soybean cultivars with early maturity adapted to longer days and colder climates of high latitudes is very important for ensuring normal ripening before frost begins. FUL belongs to the MADS‐box transcription factor family and has several duplicated members in soybeans. In this study, we observed that overexpression of GmFULc in the Dongnong 50 cultivar promoted soybean maturity, while GmFULc knockout mutants exhibited late maturity. Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP‐seq) and RNA sequencing (RNA‐seq) revealed that GmFULc could bind to the CArG, bHLH and homeobox motifs. Further investigation revealed that GmFULc could directly bind to the CArG motif in the promoters of the GmZTL3 and GmZTL4 genes. Overexpression of GmZTL4 promoted soybean maturity, whereas the ztl4 mutants exhibited delayed maturity. Moreover, we found that the cis element box 4 motif of the GmZTL4 promoter, a motif of light response elements, played an important role in controlling the growth period. Deletion of this motif shortened the growth period by increasing the expression levels of GmZTL4. Functional investigations revealed that short‐day treatment promoted the binding of GmFULc to the promoter of GmZTL4 and inhibited the expression of E1 and E1Lb, ultimately resulting in the promotion of flowering and early maturation. Taken together, these findings suggest a novel photoperiod regulatory pathway in which GmFULc directly activates GmZTL4 to promote earlier maturity in soybean.

Key words: flowering time, GmFULc, GmZTL4, maturity, photoperiod

Jingzhe Sun, Yucheng Liu, Yuhong Zheng, Yongguo Xue, Yuhuan Fan, Xiaofei Ma, Yujia Ji, Gaoyuan Liu, Xiaoming Zhang, Yang Li, Shuming Wang, Zhixi Tian and Lin Zhao. The MADS‐box transcription factor GmFULc promotes GmZTL4 gene transcription to modulate maturity in soybean[J]. J Integr Plant Biol., 2024, 66(8): 1603-1619.

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The MADS‐box transcription factor GmFULc promotes GmZTL4 gene transcription to modulate maturity in soybean

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