Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening

IntroductionEthylene response factors (ERF) were important for plant growth, hormone signaling, fruit ripening and stress response. Despite the wide identification of ERF family members in various species, limited information is available regarding this family in Akebia trifoliata.MethodsThe APETALA...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Juan Niu, Ying Li, Zhimin Sun, Ying Lin, Chao Zhang, Bo Yang, Shuang Tian, Mingbao Luan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-08-01
Series:Frontiers in Plant Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1607254/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849222440232681472
author Juan Niu
Juan Niu
Ying Li
Zhimin Sun
Ying Lin
Chao Zhang
Bo Yang
Shuang Tian
Mingbao Luan
Mingbao Luan
author_facet Juan Niu
Juan Niu
Ying Li
Zhimin Sun
Ying Lin
Chao Zhang
Bo Yang
Shuang Tian
Mingbao Luan
Mingbao Luan
author_sort Juan Niu
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionEthylene response factors (ERF) were important for plant growth, hormone signaling, fruit ripening and stress response. Despite the wide identification of ERF family members in various species, limited information is available regarding this family in Akebia trifoliata.MethodsThe APETALA2/ethylene response factor genes in A. trifoliata were identified and analyzed using bioinformatic approaches and AtrERF001 was verified to be involved in fruit ripening by experiments.ResultsTherefore, 131 APETALA2/ethylene response factor genes were identified from the A. trifoliata genome. Gene structures, motif compositions, tandem duplication events and promoter structure of ERF genes were characterized, providing insights into the molecular basis underlying the discrepant functions of ERF genes within each evolutionary branch. Expression patterns under ethylene and 1-MCP treatments of these ERF genes were further analyzed using real-time PCR (RT-qPCR), revealing that 9 key ERF genes are closely associated with fruit ripening. A co-expression regulatory network analysis indicated that AtrERF001 was one of the hub gene. AtrERF001 was found to localize in nucleus by subcellular localization analysis. Overexpression of AtrERF001 in Akebia trifoliata and tomato fruit resulted in early fruit ripening. The expression levels of AtrERF001, AtrACO and AtrPE in overexpression fruits were increased by about 30-fold, 5-fold and 1-fold, respectively, compared with the control, whereas silencing of AtrERF001 in A. trifoliata by virus induced gene silencing showed opposite trends. Moreover, RT-qPCR experiments showed that the expression of AtrERF001, AtrACO and :AtrPE in AtrERF001 overexpression tomato fruits at red-ripe stage were significantly increased compared with the control fruits, indicating that AtrERF001 may play an important role in regulating fruit ripening.DiscussionOur results provide new insights into the underlying regulatory mechanisms of the AP2/ERF family during fruit ripening.
format Article
id doaj-art-5c1dc4cecbdf48f2b897e05eb7daea39
institution Kabale University
issn 1664-462X
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Plant Science
spelling doaj-art-5c1dc4cecbdf48f2b897e05eb7daea392025-08-26T05:27:48ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Plant Science1664-462X2025-08-011610.3389/fpls.2025.16072541607254Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripeningJuan Niu0Juan Niu1Ying Li2Zhimin Sun3Ying Lin4Chao Zhang5Bo Yang6Shuang Tian7Mingbao Luan8Mingbao Luan9School of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Jingdezhen University, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, ChinaInstitute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, The Southern Characteristic Crop Genetic Species Innovation Team, Changsha, ChinaState Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Dao-di Herbs, National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, ChinaInstitute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, The Southern Characteristic Crop Genetic Species Innovation Team, Changsha, ChinaSchool of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Jingdezhen University, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, ChinaSchool of Life Sciences, Shangrao Normal University, Shangrao, Jiangxi, ChinaSchool of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Jingdezhen University, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, ChinaSchool of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Jingdezhen University, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, ChinaInstitute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, The Southern Characteristic Crop Genetic Species Innovation Team, Changsha, ChinaNational Nanfan Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya, ChinaIntroductionEthylene response factors (ERF) were important for plant growth, hormone signaling, fruit ripening and stress response. Despite the wide identification of ERF family members in various species, limited information is available regarding this family in Akebia trifoliata.MethodsThe APETALA2/ethylene response factor genes in A. trifoliata were identified and analyzed using bioinformatic approaches and AtrERF001 was verified to be involved in fruit ripening by experiments.ResultsTherefore, 131 APETALA2/ethylene response factor genes were identified from the A. trifoliata genome. Gene structures, motif compositions, tandem duplication events and promoter structure of ERF genes were characterized, providing insights into the molecular basis underlying the discrepant functions of ERF genes within each evolutionary branch. Expression patterns under ethylene and 1-MCP treatments of these ERF genes were further analyzed using real-time PCR (RT-qPCR), revealing that 9 key ERF genes are closely associated with fruit ripening. A co-expression regulatory network analysis indicated that AtrERF001 was one of the hub gene. AtrERF001 was found to localize in nucleus by subcellular localization analysis. Overexpression of AtrERF001 in Akebia trifoliata and tomato fruit resulted in early fruit ripening. The expression levels of AtrERF001, AtrACO and AtrPE in overexpression fruits were increased by about 30-fold, 5-fold and 1-fold, respectively, compared with the control, whereas silencing of AtrERF001 in A. trifoliata by virus induced gene silencing showed opposite trends. Moreover, RT-qPCR experiments showed that the expression of AtrERF001, AtrACO and :AtrPE in AtrERF001 overexpression tomato fruits at red-ripe stage were significantly increased compared with the control fruits, indicating that AtrERF001 may play an important role in regulating fruit ripening.DiscussionOur results provide new insights into the underlying regulatory mechanisms of the AP2/ERF family during fruit ripening.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1607254/fullAkebia trifoliataAP2/ERF familyexpression profilefruit ripeningtranscriptional regulation
spellingShingle Juan Niu
Juan Niu
Ying Li
Zhimin Sun
Ying Lin
Chao Zhang
Bo Yang
Shuang Tian
Mingbao Luan
Mingbao Luan
Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
Frontiers in Plant Science
Akebia trifoliata
AP2/ERF family
expression profile
fruit ripening
transcriptional regulation
title Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
title_full Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
title_fullStr Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
title_full_unstemmed Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
title_short Genome-wide analysis of AP2/ERF family in Akebia trifoliata and characterization of an AtrERF001 gene regulate fruit ripening
title_sort genome wide analysis of ap2 erf family in akebia trifoliata and characterization of an atrerf001 gene regulate fruit ripening
topic Akebia trifoliata
AP2/ERF family
expression profile
fruit ripening
transcriptional regulation
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1607254/full
work_keys_str_mv AT juanniu genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT juanniu genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT yingli genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT zhiminsun genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT yinglin genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT chaozhang genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT boyang genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT shuangtian genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT mingbaoluan genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening
AT mingbaoluan genomewideanalysisofap2erffamilyinakebiatrifoliataandcharacterizationofanatrerf001generegulatefruitripening