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The ZFP36/ZFP252–OsDOG1L1–OsPP2Cs module regulates seed germination in rice

Chuyan Chen1†, Kunming Zhang1†, Jun Miao1,2,3, Xianhui Yao1, Jiajia Yu1, Xiangbo Li1, Xianfeng Li1, Liang Chen1, Gulinaer Bahetibieke4, Lei Ren4, Zhiyun Gong1,2, Chen Chen1,2, Qianfeng Li1,2, Zefeng Yang1,2, Tao Zhang2,3*, Guohua Liang2,3* and Yong Zhou1,2,3*   

  1. 1. Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Crop Genomics and Molecular Breeding, Zhongshan Biological Breeding Laboratory, Key Laboratory of Plant Functional Genomics of the Ministry of Education, Agricultural College of Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
    2. Jiangsu Co‐Innovation Center for Modern Production Technology of Grain Crops, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Physiology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
    3. Yangzhou Modern Seed Innovation Institute, Gaoyou 225600, China
    4. Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture Institute of Agricultural Science, Yili 835000, China
    †These authors contributed equally to this work.
    *Correspondences: Yong Zhou (zhouyong@yzu.edu.cn, Dr. Zhou is fully responsible for the distributions of all materials associated with this article); Guohua Liang (ricegb@yzu.edu.cn); Tao Zhang (taozhang01@yzu.edu.cn)
  • Received:2025-12-27 Accepted:2026-06-05 Online:2026-06-29
  • Supported by:
    This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2024YFE0103400), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK20230013), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32472030), the Program of Zhongshan Biological Breeding Laboratory (ZSBBL‐ KY2025‐2), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2025M774030), the Post‐graduate Research & Practice Innovation Program of Jiangsu Province (KYCX22_3505), and the PAPD Program from Jiangsu Government.

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Abstract: Seed germination is a complex, multistep developmental process that is critical for plant growth and regulated by intricate polygenic networks. Despite its agronomic significance, the precise mechanism underlying this process in rice remains incompletely understood. In this study, we determined a seed‐specific gene OsDOG1L1, the ortholog of Arabidopsis DOG1, as an essential regulator that inhibits germination while promoting seed dormancy in rice. Overexpression of OsDOG1L1 led to delayed germination and enhanced dormancy, whereas loss‐of‐function mutants showed accelerated germination and reduced dormancy. Temporal analysis showed a progressive decline in OsDOG1L1 transcript and protein levels during germination. Furthermore, we identified two C2H2‐type zinc finger transcription factors, ZFP36 (also known as Bsr‐d1) and ZFP252, as direct regulators of OsDOG1L1, functioning upstream to repress OsDOG1L1 expression. Molecular and genetic analyses demonstrated that OsDOG1L1 interacts with and suppresses the phosphatase activity of clade A protein phosphatase 2Cs (PP2Cs), OsPP2C09 and OsPP2C30, thereby enhancing ABA signaling to inhibit seed germination. Together, our findings uncover a ZFP36/ ZFP252–OsDOG1L1–OsPP2Cs regulatory module that governs rice seed germination, providing insights into the molecular regulation of germination control in rice.

Key words: C2H2 ZFP protein, clade‐A PP2C phosphatases, OsDOG1L1, rice, seed germination

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